Changing Tides
by Alchemist1917
Summary: The Galactic Empire is solidifying its iron-grip on the galaxy. In this totalitarian galaxy, Jedi survivors try to hide and survive. Ahsoka Tano and Barriss Offee, once enemies, now work together to ensure their survival. At first they were intent upon making a living on whatever world they end up on until one night Ahsoka has a dream that would have deep changes to the galaxy.
1. Two Years

**The following takes place in the year 17BBY. The Empire had affirmed its position as the ruling entity of the galaxy. Any surviving Jedi are hunted down by the second-in-command of the Emperor, Darth Vader, and his Dark Side Adepts. Any rebellions from planets under Imperial rule are brutally crushed under its iron fist. It is the opening years of the so called Dark Times. **

(Ord Mantell)

From the position in the cantina, she could see everything and everyone around her. Species from across the galaxy were gathered here, drinking and cursing and gambling, and of course fighting. After two years of traveling and making sure to stay clear of Imperial agents, she was used to it. Ord Mantell was closer than she wanted to be to Imperial authority, but the Empire only had a thin hold on the planet. At least here she could relax since she didn't have to worry about sticking out. There were some Togruta traders at a table on the far side of the cantina. The ale she had in her hand was a little bitter, but she had developed a taste for it over time.

Barriss soon came back to the table. She had let her hood off, knowing that Mirialans were a common site in this part of the galaxy. Her hair, once cut short, was longer now reaching to her shoulders. She was also slightly taller, reaching a height of 5'8" at the age of 22. Ahsoka was 18 years old at 5'10", her montrals making up for the last three inches. The ends of her lekku were now down fully to her breasts. Ahsoka had on a scarlet and dark-brown leather top with part of the back open to show her back. A belt held up her black form-fitting pants, she also donning on black boots. She even wore her Togruta sash over her pants. She decided to go without her akul headdress to keep it safe.

The top was held by two straps and revealed her skin to the top of her breasts, revealing a small amount of cleavage. Her necklace, her combined akul tooth along with her green crystal rested there. She also wore red leather gloves over her hands. Barriss wore an outfit similar to her Jedi clothing minus the skirt, the material made from a tight of synthetic leather and cloth that hugged her form. She had her sleeves cut from the elbow down. At their belts, a lightsaber held hidden underneath their cloaks, as well as a blaster.

"Anything?" said Ahsoka.

"None. You would think there was something here someone needed to get taken care of," said Barriss, sighing in her seat.

They had underwent odd jobs to make ends meet, only using the bag of credits when they had no money to buy food. They were now down to 4,000 credits, a large sum of it stolen during an incident six months ago. It was still enough to get them by for some time, but they didn't want to go through it.

"This isn't good. I hate having to use the bag," said Ahsoka.

"We could try bounty hunting again," said Barriss.

"The last time we did that not only was the person highly dangerous, but we almost ran into Bane," said Ahsoka.

The event had given her nightmares. They had went to find the murderer of a nobleman from Malastare. The murderer, a Rodian, had been highly skilled and had nearly killed Ahsoka had Barriss not resorted to Force choking to subdue him. Once they were about to get off planet, Cad Bane had shown up for the same man. Ahsoka had been forced to hide herself since Bane didn't know who Barriss was. After some hard grappling with each other and threats turning into a near confrontation, Barriss decided the bounty wasn't worth fighting over and reluctantly handed the murderer over. Had they fought, Ahsoka would have been discovered and every bounty hunter and Imperial agent in the galaxy would be making a beeline for them.

"You're right. Too much attention will be brought on us if we run into anyone else who might have seen us," said Barriss. "What else is there?"

"I hate to say this, but gambling is our bet," said Ahsoka. She personally hated it.

"It's better than nothing," said Barriss.

Whenever they were down on their luck, gambling got them a place to stay and food in them for a week. Barriss was more accepted to what they did, but Ahsoka loathed every bit of it. Ahsoka got up to ask the barkeep when the next gambling event was. The Dug told her all she needed to know, coming back to sit down at the table.

"When's the next event?" said Barriss.

"Pazaak in an hour at the bar across the street," said Ahsoka.

"Good."

* * *

"Alright, place your bets down," said the barkeep at the large concave-circle table.

The barkeep was the dealer, and around the table were five others. Ahsoka was part of this table. At the second table was Barriss, sitting with four others and the assistant manager to the cantina. The manager kept his eyes on both tables. Ahsoka placed a few credits down worth 140 while others ranged from 100 to 200. Once the bets were placed, the dealer began to shuffle the cards. The object of the game was to hit 20 or get as close to 20 without going over. The cards consisted of two decks: main deck and side deck. The main deck composed of cards ranging from 1-10 while the side deck consisted of ten "special" cards. Ahsoka and the others each chose one card from the side deck before the dealer began dealing to them.

Two cards were given to each player face down. When they were handed to them, they all looked. Ahsoka had a 6 and a 3. She looked at her secondary card, a blue plus card. The value was 2.

"Any takers?" said the dealer.

"Hit me," said a Trandoshan. The dealer slid him a card.

"Hit me," said a Duros. He grumbled to himself. He out his cards down, clearly busting.

"Hit me," said Ahsoka. The dealer handed her a card. She knew what it was before she lifted it. A 9.

"20," she said. The others around her looked at her in astonishment.

"Winner," said the dealer, sliding the combined pot to Ahsoka.

"Not bad girl," said a Human smuggler with a crooked grin and shifty eyes. Ahsoka put on her flirtatious face.

"What can I say, I'm good," said Ahsoka, winking at him.

A new hand was dealt. Ahsoka found she had a 4 and a 10, her second card a -2 card. It would come in handy if she was dealt an 8. She called a hit and the dealer dealt her a 4. She used the Force to see the next few cards. The card she needed was right below the top of the deck. She needed someone to call for a hit if she was going to win outright. Thankfully the Trandoshan called a hit, and she called her next hit to hit 20 again. The players around her thought she was insanely lucky to get 20 two times in a row.

"How about getting some of that luck around here," said the Human.

"Sorry, you'll have to wait in line," said Ahsoka, flashing him another grin that got the smuggler to nervously tap her fingers.

At the other table, Barriss was sweet talking a Bessalisk. Anytime they were reduced to gambling, they used their natural charm and assets to make the other players focus less on their hands and more on them. It had enjoyed success before and seemed to be working now.

The game went on until Ahsoka had amassed a total of 1500 credits. The men around them were sullen from their losses, especially when the Trandoshan had managed to get a 20, but so did Ahsoka. Ahsoka also had the golden tiebreaker card drawn from the side deck, the dealer declaring her the winner.

"Wow, you have some kind of magic on you girl," said the Duros, truly impressed and not mad about the situation.

Ahsoka, however, felt bad cheating them of their money. The only time she had not been sorry was when a rude Zabrak had been trying to cop a feel from her during a game of sabaac. She beat him in the game mercilessly.

"Thanks, guess it was my lucky night," said Ahsoka.

"You can say that again," said the smuggler, eyeing her hungrily but keeping his distance. Ahsoka hoped he would stay that way. Once the game was over, she went over to Barriss who was counting her profit.

"I got around 1800," said Barriss.

"1500 for me," said Ahsoka.

"That should keep us going for a few weeks here," said Barriss, placing them all in their pouch.

Bidding the dealers and the other players good night, the two ex-Jedi left the cantina. The streets of the city they were in were well-lit, with billboards and advertisements shining everywhere. It reminded Ahsoka of Coruscant. A squad of stormtroopers patrolled the street, but the girls didn't have to hide from them. For all they knew, they were already dead.

They had seen the wanted posters of Jedi around the galaxy who were still at large. She was relieved to find that Yoda was still alive, and was even more gladdened when she saw that Obi-Wan Kenobi was alive as well. She hoped that one day they would meet again. She also knew that Anakin, or she should say Darth Vader, had underwent an operation to where he was in a menacing suit of black armor. At the moment, she was glad they hadn't ran into each other. If they did, heads would roll. She would never forgive him for what he had done at the Temple.

What made her cry more than anything else was to find out that Padme was dead. She remembered Barriss holding her for a few hours as she cried ceaselessly into her shoulder. What was worse was that from her appearance, the funeral broadcast out on the HoloNet, was that she was still pregnant. It seemed that the last days of the Republic were filled with so much heart ache and sadness. For a fleeting moment, she felt sorry for Anakin. That was until she saw the cause of death for Padme: murdered by the Jedi. She was extremely confused by it, wondering what Jedi would want to kill Padme, who would sooner risk her life to save as many Jedi than betray them. Something didn't seem right about the entire affair.

She and Barriss got back to the small room they were staying in for the time being. The room had two mattresses on two cots. A small bathroom connected to it.

"I really hate doing that," said Ahsoka.

"I know you do Ahsoka," said Barriss, taking her cloak. "Even I'm still reserved to doing it too." They were talking of course about using the Force to plot their next moves and see the cards without them being flipped over.

"What's the next plan?" said Ahsoka, placing her lightsaber and blaster on the nightstand. Her hilt was shaped exactly like her old one, crafting a new one from scratch. The process proved long and arduous but she was able to complete it. Barriss' had a more curved hilt to her lightsaber, hers a yellow color.

They had to create their own crystals when they discovered that the crystal caves on Ilum had already been sealed and a garrison of stormtroopers on the planet. Ventures to the other caves ended up the same. After a discussion, the pair decided to make their own.

"I'm not sure. Perhaps somewhere in the Mid-Rim this time?" said Barriss.

"It might be risky," said Ahsoka.

"It shouldn't be. We're dead remember," said Barriss, beginning to take off her outfit.

"Still, I'd rather not draw any suspicion. At least lets avoid planets that we fought on," said Ahsoka, taking hers off as well. She had currently stayed away from those planets to keep up the facade that she was dead. That meant that she would never see Long on Elementia, or her mother ever again. It was all to keep them safe from the knowledge of her living status.

The two women undressed till they were in just their underwear, Ahsoka in just her lower underwear due to the type of top she had on. She turned to find a loose shirt to wear over herself. Barriss had on her bra and panties, taking those off as well before she put on some loose fitting pants and night shirt. Once they were in their sleeping attire they climbed onto their respective beds. Ahsoka kept her necklace on as she rested her head onto the pillow.

"Ahsoka?" said Barriss.

"Yes?" said Ahsoka.

"Do you...still think about him?" said Barriss.

Ahsoka sighed, turning over to face her.

"I always do," said Ahsoka.

"The nightmares still troubling you?" Barriss asked.

"I can control them," said Ahsoka, turning back around.

"The last time you said that we got a noise complaint," said Barriss.

"I can handle it Barriss," said Ahsoka. Barriss sighed.

"Alright, if you say so," said Barriss, turning around in her bed. Ahsoka turned around as well, fingering the necklace as she slowly began to fall asleep.

_She was running down through the hall of the Temple. The sounds of dying and screaming beings resonated throughout the halls. She kept running not stopping as she was chased by an unseen force. She turned a corner to see a small female child mercilessly gunned down by a squad of clones. She turned from the sight, only to run into Bruck._

_"Get down!" he yelled, turning to shield her from the oncoming mortar shells. She ducked behind a pillar, feeling the concussive force of the live rounds. She looked to see Bruck lying on the ground, his body pierced by shrapnel everywhere on his body and blood flowing the cuts. She could only yell to him before she found herself running again, chased by the unseen force. At another hallway she saw Tia fighting off a squad of clones before she was shot too, falling to the ground. Ahsoka raised her lightsaber and fought them off, killing them all with slashes, cuts and stabs. She turned back to help Tia, but saw Anakin stab her through her back. He looked up to see her, his eyes yellow with anger and hatred._

_"Ahsoka! Run!" yelled Taran, running past her and seizing her hand. She and ran as Anakin pursued them. They turned until they got to a set of stairs. Taran let go of her to move behind her and block the stairs with his bending, blocking them from Anakin._

_"Come on, we're getting out of here," said Taran. They kept running until they got to the hatch, swiftly jumping through it onto the roof. Taran looked around to see if the coast was clear. _

_"I think we're fine," he said. Suddenly, Anakin appeared right behind him. _

_"Taran, no!" yelled Ahsoka. Taran turned as Anakin slashed down his torso with his lightsaber, sending him falling to the ground. Anakin lifted up his lightsaber. _

_"Anakin, please," said Taran, pleading with him not to do it. He ignored him, plunging his lightsaber down into his chest. _

_"NO!" yelled Ahsoka. Suddenly, a shot hit her in the leg, sending her toppling down to the ground. She looked behind her to see Rex holding the pistol. Before she knew it, she was being pulled towards Anakin, who was using the Force to pull her towards him, drawing his lightsaber from Taran's body. _

_"Anakin, please don't do this. You're my friend!" she said as she got closer. _

_"I have no friends," he said. "Now join them all in death." His lightsaber came crashing down into her heart. She could feel it burning her chest from the inside as she looked into his acid yellow eyes. _

Ahsoka sprang up in her bed, panting heavily. Her body was covered in sweat as she recollected her nightmare. Barriss was already up, worry on her face.

"Ahsoka?" said Barriss. Ahsoka took a deep breath. Barriss understood immediately that it happened again. Without a further word she got off her bed and sat down on the edge of Ahsoka's, facing her.

"Barriss, I don't know how to get past this. I don't want to keep seeing him die in front of me," said Ahsoka, her voice shaky.

"Ahsoka, you have to move on. Taran's dead, you have to accept it," said Barriss.

"I know he's dead. I...just don't forget about him," said Ahsoka.

"He wouldn't want you to be fretting about him like this. You have to let go," said Barriss. Ahsoka took another deep breath, before she nodded.

"You're right," said Ahsoka. "I have to start letting go."

"Here, I'll lay down with you," said Barriss. Ahsoka made room for her in the bed as Barriss got beside her. Ahsoka turned around, looking at the wall.

"Barriss, did you ever have someone you loved?" said Ahsoka.

"Master Unduli," said Barriss.

"I mean like love loved," said Ahsoka. Barriss shook her head.

"Why?" said Ahsoka.

"I never had the time or opportunity to find someone like that," said Barriss. "Although deep down, I always wanted to. What's it like?"

"It's like...all you can think about is them. What they're doing, are they alright. You just...want to be with them at all times and experience life together, because your life revolves around them and they you. It's like that," said Ahsoka.

"You think I can find that one day?" said Barriss.

"I'm sure you can," said Ahsoka. "It's never too late."

"Do you think you might be able to again?" said Barriss. Ahsoka didn't answer.

"I don't want to talk about it Barriss. Good night," said Ahsoka.

"Sorry. Good night," said Barriss, turning around herself.

Ahsoka was sorry she had brushed her off like that, but at the moment she didn't want to relive her past memories. The pain she felt was too much for her. She fingered the necklace again before sleep found her in its embrace again.

* * *

(Molavar. Outer Rim)

The desert terrain stretched out before him as he looked out over the landscape, the sun setting as he gazed at it from his position on the butte. Sweat rolled down his exposed skin, going shirtless as he trained out in the desert. The pair of fingerless brown leather gloves he donned on covered the tattoos on the back of his hands. His boots were a combination of leather and iron, the iron located at the soles of the feet, but the leather slightly overlaying it to make sure the iron didn't sound off on the floor. (Jim Hawkin's style boots from Treasure Planet)

His pants were dusty from his workout. They were Huttese bantha leggings which were yellow and black and though comfortable was also a type of armor. His clothing consisted of a dark-green shirt with a black greatcoat that went over it that went down to his knees. A circular hat similar to the type Earth Kingdom soldiers wore minus the spike was next to the pile of clothes, it being dark-brown with black edged on the rim. His hair was now shoulder-length and tied back, two dreads framing his face on both sides. The scar on his face was a shade lighter than his skin, the one going down his torso the same.

He sat on the edge of the butte, deep in thought. After a few minutes he sighed and got his clothes back on. He hopped off the butte, air spreading from his feet to soften his landing before he started walking, a pack slung over his back containing a DC-15S he had taken from a clone trooper who no longer needed it a year ago and his homemade lightsaber that had taken months to make. He stood at 5'10" having shot up from his previous 5'8", a small amount of facial hair on his chin. He even wore a black neckerchief to cover the bottom of his face whenever he needed to and a pair of black goggles pulled onto his forehead.

The settlement was only a few clicks away. It took him less than thirty minutes walking to get back. The village was filled with mostly moisture farmers and some deep-space spacers from the nearby spaceport. The spaceport was more of a collection of dirt, sand, rock and metal shaped in a macabre fashion to resemble a spaceport.

He passed by many of the native Molavarans, a humanoid-like species with long faces and pointed teeth, tendrils for hair protruding from their scalp and and caramel skin. Also present were some Humans and other various species. Either way, no one knew who he truly was. He went around with the name Yassir, the name he had used as his identity back on Julla. Even if he had went around as Taran, no one would care.

He went into the small tenant hovel he had been staying at for ten days. The hovel was tiny, not even a stove to make his meals. He cooked them outside, the hovel only holding a bed and a few pieces of furniture. He had caught a desert animal on the trip back, using his firebending to start the fire and beginning to skin the creature. It had a decent amount of meat on it as he cut through its skin. He settled the prepared meat onto a spit ad began to slowly roast it. His stomach growled, but he ignored it. He'd be fine once he had his fill in the next hour. He watched flames roast the meat, staring into the fire. The journey he had been on for the last two years was...tenuous.

He remembered when he woke up, he couldn't remember who he was at first. He remembered the immense amount of pain he was in and fell asleep, where several visions/memories came to him. It took nearly a week for him to be able to function properly, and more so for the wounds to heal. The memories began to come back over time. Her face was his drive to secure all his memories back, recollecting everything over the past month as he stayed in hiding on Coruscant.

He left the Quarren's residence, bidding him goodbye and giving him his heartfelt thanks for saving his life. When he asked the Quarren why he risked his life to save him, the Quarren's reply was simple.

_"I just remember a Jedi who helped me when I was in trouble. He knew who I was and what I had did, but he still defended me. I thought in that moment when I saw you dying that I had to repay the debt. Go in peace and life your life Taran Cyneran," he had said._

The memory brought warmth to Taran's heart as he remembered his words. The meat finished cooking and he sat it off to the side to let it cool off. His thoughts turned to events that had transpired over time. Obi-Wan was still alive, seeing the wanted poster for missing Jedi. He vowed that he would try and seek him out, and that's what he'd been doing since he left Coruscant, hoping to find his former master. He knew that Anakin, now going by Darth Vader, had a new imposing visage of black armor. Why he chose that look, he didn't know. He also knew that Padme was dead, and the child with her.

What's worse was that he believed that Ahsoka was dead as well.

_"Ahsoka,"_ he thought.

When he'd ask the Quarren for any news on alive Jedi, the Quarren gave him a list of Jedi whose still remained wanted. He saw the X near Ahsoka's name, meaning that her death was confirmed. He cried harder than he had ever cried before for a full night, the tears never ending. The Quarren gave him comfort when the morning drew, telling him that he was still alive and should do what needed to be done. His words rang out in Taran's mind as he resolved to continue on with his life and further on his skills to survive.

He had searched every planet he could think of, finding no trace of Obi-Wan or even Yoda for that matter. He mostly kept a distance from civilization, mostly keeping to himself and doing a job every now and again to make ends meet if he needed to. He even did bounty hunting for a Hutt lord once, gaining 5000 credits from the venture, a good majority still in safe keeping. However, his recent activities had come at a cost.

He knew he had to tap into his powers more to gain control, but some feelings were left behind when he left. Despite utilizing the light side of the Force, he would tap into the dark side if the situation called for it.

Sometimes, it went uncontrolled because he let it. He didn't mind it. It was how he needed to survive now

_"I'm not a follower of the light, but neither am I a follower of the dark. I'm...gray,"_ he thought sadly. The feelings he felt were neutral about his new stance. He remembered when he finally accepted his new stance on the matter.

_He was in a cantina on Nar Shaddaa a year ago. He was drinking a hard alcohol that tasted disgusting, but he didn't mind. He was happy to have gotten something to drink anyway, the bartender letting him have one on the house. He was by himself on the counter, a group of bounty hunters talking boastfully to each other of their recent bounties. Taran ignored them, taking a drink from the mug again._

_Suddenly a hand clapped on his shoulder, causing him to choke on his drink. He sputtered as the bounty hunter behind him laughed._

_"Aw, little tyke can't hold his drink I see," said the bounty hunter, a Weequayan._

_"Do you mind, I'm trying to drink in peace," said Taran, going back to his drink, now visibly annoyed._

_"Sorry about that kid," said the bounty hunter, shrugging and going back to the others._

_"I don't like his tone," said another bounty hunter, a Trandoshan. He got up and walked over to Taran, his mug only inches from his face. "Do you think that I'll let you talk to my buddy like that boy?"_

_"I think that if you don't get out of my face in the next few seconds, you're gonna be in a lot worse shape than you are now," Taran said darkly. _

_"Why you little," said the Trandoshan, drawing his blaster. Taran didn't even blink, stomping the ground at his feet and causing the Trandoshan to hit the ceiling of the cantina, falling down to the ground. _

_"Kriff, an Elementian!" said another bounty hunter. _

_Taran glowered at them as they attempted to draw their blasters. He assumed a bending stance and used his earthbending to cause them all to fall to the ground and catapulted out of the cantina via through the doorway, windows, or even straight through the wall. Taran huffed, turning around to the startled bartender. Before he could speak, he heard the sound of a drawn blaster. He looked back to see the Trandoshan aiming his blaster pistol at him, his blood slowly tricking down his face from his forehead. _

_"You little shit," said the Trandoshan. _

_Taran glared at him. He didn't give the Trandoshan a chance. He stamped his foot down one more time. A spike sprang out under his chest, going through it and killing the bounty hunter instantly. Once Taran knew he was dead, he turned back to the now horribly frightened bartender. He reached into his pack and pulled out a fistful of druggats, placing the money on the counter. _

_"Sorry about that, just really hate giving people second chances now," said Taran, slinging the pack over his shoulders and thanking him for the drink, stepping past the dead Trandoshan without a second glance, the blood pooling around the body. _

If Taran blamed anyone for the cause of his transformation, it was Vader. The betrayal and treachery from the Temple massacre still rang in the depths of his soul. He remembered the Jedi he killed, holding Tia as she died in his arms, the wounds he inflicted on him. The wounds still ached even now whenever he saw his image on a poster, a hologram or some advertisement issuing out conforming to the Empire and loyalty to the Emperor. it made him sick how the senators so reluctantly cheered on losing their rights that made them a Republic. What was worse was finally figuring out why Palpatine had initiated the war.

Taking out the Jedi, the only ones who could stand against him.

_"If we ever meet again Vader, I'm not holding back,"_ he thought angrily, taking a bite out of the meat.

Because of Vader he could never again hold Ahsoka close to him, could never go back to his home planet to fulfill his duties as the Avatar, could never live the semi-normal life he always wanted. All of that was gone as soon as the first clone trooper walked into the Temple. Now he was condemned, everyone believing he was dead. His self-imposed exile to protect the rest of the people he cared about ate away at him daily.

He discarded the bones and walked back into the hovel. He put his coat and hat onto the nightstand and kicked his boots off, laying in bed and staring at the ceiling, brooding. Outside, the sunset sky was now night with thousands of stars illuminating the night sky. Taran was still brooding in his bed before he heaved a sigh and turned on his side, willing sleep to take him.

**Review your thoughts**


	2. To Coruscant

_He was back in the Temple, the destruction still present around the hallway. Everything around him was deathly quiet. To his surprise, he was still in his Jedi robes._

_"What's going on?" said Taran. A blue light appeared next to him, shimmering into existence before it became whole. The man was of Water Tribe descent with ice-blue eyes and white hair that hung down to his shoulders. His face was old and grizzled, his bear hanging down to just below his chin. He wore the polar outfit common in the Water Tribe. _

_"Avatar Rutuk?" said Taran, seeing the embodiment of the Avatar before him. _

_"Yes Taran. We must talk," said Rutuk, walking ahead of Taran down the hall. _

_"Why are you here?" said Taran. _

_"I've been observing you as of late. Your actions have become noticeably darker," said Rutuk. _

_"After what I've been through, a little dealing their own medicine doesn't hurt," said Taran. _

_"It's not you though," said Rutuk. _

_"Why does it matter?" said Taran, not seeing the point his past life was trying to make. _

_"Because it will lead you down the path you vowed never to follow," said Rutuk. _

_"Oh spirits, I kill a few people and suddenly you all think I'm evil? Who put you up to this? Avatar Dawa? Kyojin? Korra? Aang? If they did then they're wasting their time. I did what I had to do to survive. I never started the fights; they did! If that's a sin then I guess you all want me to die then. If I had done this stance from the beginning she'd..." he trailed off from his rant before he looked away. _

_"She would what?" said Rutuk. _

_"Still be alive. I didn't do what had to be done and we all suffered for it," said Taran. "I'm not going to let that happen again." Rutuk studied him for a moment. _

_"There's something else isn't there?" said Taran. _

_"Yes. Do you by chance recall the holocron you hid in the Temple?" said Rutuk. _

_"Holocron? I remember giving one to the younglings, but don't recall that one," said Taran. Even now some things he still had recollect. _

_"Are you sure?" said Rutuk. _

_"All I remember was running from An-Vader, and then..." said Taran. The he remembered everything. _

**_He saw that he was ahead and hastily bent a slab of rock out of the side of the corner. He then placed the holocron inside and covered the opening. He sensed Vader was near and hastily crumbled the slab into tiny pieces before running, Vader turning the corner a second later. He was relieved to see he hadn't noticed, letting him chase him to the top of the Temple. _**

_"You remember now?" said Rutuk. Taran nodded. _

_"I have to get it before it falls into the wrong hands," said Taran. _

_"Then be on your way. Only you can save it," said Rutuk. Rutuk disappeared, a shimmering blue light replacing him. _

_"Taran. You must go to Coruscant and retrieve the holocron. If it is found, then the Emperor is one step closer to achieving total power," said the voice. _

_"Master Plo?" said Taran, shocked beyond reason. _

_"Go!" _

Taran woke up with a start. He looked around his hovel before he got up and began to put his clothes on. He had to get to Coruscant, and fast.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ahsoka was dreaming again. Barriss slept beside her, she too dreaming as well.

_Ahsoka and Barriss were suddenly together in their dream. _

_"Barriss? What are you doing here?" said Ahsoka. _

_"I could ask you the same," said Barriss. "Where are we?" _

_"I think we're in a dream," said Ahsoka. "But I don't know why." Suddenly, a blue image began to shimmer in front of them, but did not take form. _

_"Ahsoka," said the voice. She instantly recognized the voice. _

_"Master Plo?" said Ahsoka. _

_"Ahsoka, Barriss, you must go to Coruscant," it said. _

_"Coruscant? But why?" said Barriss. _

_"That doesn't make sense. That's the last planet we'd want to go to," said Ahsoka. _

_"You must. It is of the utmost importance. Go," said the voice of Plo Koon before the image vanished, ending their dream. _

They woke at the same time, wondering what had just happened. Ahsoka looked outside to see that it was morning already.

"That was a weird dream," said Barriss, yawning and stretching. Ahsoka was still in shock.

"Ahsoka?" said Barriss, moving closer to her worried about the dream's impact on her.

"I think we have to go to Coruscant," said Ahsoka.

"But why? Coruscant is the worst place in the galaxy for us to be right now," said Barriss.

"I know it is Barriss," said Ahsoka.

"Need I remind you of what's on the planet," said Barriss.

"No, but I know you will anyway," said Ahsoka.

"There's stormtroopers checking on every person who leaves a ship. Then what's worse, there's cameras and probe droids on nearly every street looking for any faces that happen to be wanted or not there and if someone who remembers us see our faces they'll notify every garrison the planet, not to mention that we'll be right under the noses of the Emperor and Vader. It's like walking into the mouth of a sarlaac knowing there's next to no real chance of getting back out," said Barriss.

"Either way, I have to go. Master Plo...he needs me to do something important on there. I don't know what it is, but he wouldn't come back from the Netherworld if it wasn't important," said Ahsoka.

"Ahsoka, we can't," said Barriss, trying to convince her that doing this was suicide. Ahsoka got off the bed and began to find clothes to wear.

"You don't have to come Barriss. You don't have to risk your life because of my actions," said Ahsoka.

"Ahsoka, we've been together too long to call it quits now. I'm coming with you," said Barriss.

"You don't have to," said Ahsoka.

"I am, don't try to stop me," said Barriss.

"Shouldn't you be saying that?" said Ahsoka.

"Well someone had to," said Barriss. The two shared a small laugh as they hastily put their clothes on. Barriss put on her outfit while Ahsoka changed her top to a long-sleeve red shirt made of silk. They gave each other a once over to see that everything looked right before they put their cloaks on.

"Now to find a ride," said Barriss.

"Can't be too hard right?" said Ahsoka.

* * *

"This is a cargo ship, not a passenger shuttle," said the Corellian trader.

"Please? We'll even pay you," said Ahsoka.

"And the answer is still no. This cargo ship's not even going to Coruscant," he said, leaving them behind.

"Great, this sucks," said Ahsoka, slumping down to the ground.

"There's still other ships in the port. Hopefully we can find some," said Barriss. Ahsoka sighed, getting up.

"Alright, let's find someone," said Ahsoka.

For the next two hours they asked if anyone would be going to Coruscant or even the Core worlds. Most either refused to take on additional passengers, had just landed and weren't planning on leaving for awhile, or said they'd take them for a few special "favors." Barriss and Ahsoka left the perverted Falleen with two black eyes and a concussion.

"We could just take the ship," said Barriss as they slumped him to the ground.

"Then it will be reported as stolen authorities will be after us. We're still in Imperial-held territory," said Ahsoka.

"You're right. I guess we're stuck here until someone else comes through," said Barriss. Ahsoka sighed. Who knew trying to get to the most populated planet in the galaxy would be hard work.

* * *

"So you can fix my exhaust drives to improve the speed and maneuverability?" said a junker.

"Yep. I like tinkering with things, have done so since I was a kid," said Taran.

"And how much would you charge?" said the junker, a Shi'ido.

"Get me to Coruscant or as close as you can on your route," said Taran.

"Sounds like a very good deal then," said the Shi'ido. "We can't get there right away though. I have to make some stops first as well as stop for the night."

"That's completely fine with me," said Taran. "Just as long as I get there."

"Alright, well make sure you have everything packed. We ship out in an hour," said the junker, heading to the nearby cantina.

"Perfect," said Taran. He was only the first guy he'd asked all day. At first the junker wasn't so sure until Taran spotted a problem with his rear engines, his eyes being trained to pick up any mechanical faults with ease.

_"Maybe my luck's finally turning around,"_ he thought, a grin on his face.

* * *

(Three days later. Barriss and Ahsoka)

If frustrated was to describe Ahsoka, she was beyond it. She couldn't believe that no one was willing to take them to Coruscant. Not one! She and Barriss were seated in a booth in the cantina. Barriss had a water, but Ahsoka was drinking a hard liquor that Barriss had tried to persuade her not to get, but she had gotten it anyway. She sat fuming in her seat, the alcohol seeming to make everything worse instead of better.

"Maybe it's for the best Ahsoka," Barriss suggested.

"The best? How could it possibly be for the best?! We're stuck here until one of these nerf herders finds it in themselves to help us," said Ahsoka. Barriss sighed. Seeing Ahsoka angry like this meant nothing would calm her down for awhile.

"Have some hope," said Barriss.

"Barriss, my hope is like this drink: eventually it's going to get empty," said Ahsoka, taking another long gulp of it as she continued fuming.

Barriss wished there was someway she could help out. She looked around at the patrons around the cantina. As she turned, she saw a man in the back corner of the cantina gulping down an ale. She could only see the back of the man's head. His scruffy brown hair seemed untamed yet tamed.

"Hold on," said Barriss. Ahsoka mumbled something incoherent as she lay her head on the table. Barriss got up and walked over to the man.

"Excuse me, but might you have a ship?" said Barriss.

"Who's asking?" said the man, turning around in his seat.

Barriss saw that he was clean-shaven despite his appearance. He had amber eyes and a smirk that screamed "be careful" of me. Despite this, he looked relatively young. He wore a brown great coat and a tan shirt, two blasters strapped on his hips. He also wore boots studded with some kind of metal. Though she wouldn't admit it, he was cute in a roguish sort of way.

"Just a girl and her friend needing a place to go," said Barriss, wondering how she could feel intimidated by the man's humorous yet serious eyes.

"And where would that be beautiful?" he said, studying her closely.

"Ummm Coruscant," said Barriss. _"Why am I losing my nerve?" _

"Hmm not a bad place to go," said the man. "Although curiosity leads me to ask: why?"

"Let's say we need a fresh start," said Barriss.

"What kind of fresh start? Don't get me wrong, the planet itself has all kinds of work. However, you're not going to get much out of it because of your appearance," said the man.

"Appearance?" said Barriss.

"Name's Jaysh by the way. That's your friend over there?" he asked, motioning to Ahsoka who was still sulking.

"Yes. Anyway about the appearance?" said Barriss.

"You and your friend aren't really Human if you know what I mean," said Jaysh.

Unfortunately, she did. Ahsoka and her were quite aware of the new Humanocentric policies of the Empire. She and Ahsoka ad their fair share of it, Ahsoka more than her since Mirialans were considered a 'Human' species.

"And what of it?" said Barriss.

"If you wanted to find some nice jobs on the planet, you might want to try elsewhere like in the Mid-Rim the Outer Rim," said Jaysh.

"It wouldn't hurt to try though," said Barriss. Jaysh studied her for a moment.

"We'd really like to try if that's alright with you," said Barriss.

"And what would I get in return?" said Jaysh.

"Name your price," said Barriss. "And I'm going to say this now: our bodies are not for sell."

"Whoa sweetheart, do I look like that kind of guy?" said Jaysh, putting his hands out for Barriss to get a closer look. Barriss looked at him with an incredulous gaze.

"Okay, you caught me," said Jaysh, putting them up in defeat. "No you don't have to pay with 'that' kind of currency, though you have a nice rack on you." Barriss rolled her eyes.

"Can't help a guy for giving a compliment. I tell you what, I'll give you guys passage there. I'm going to have go there anyway with this shipment," said Jaysh.

"Shipment of what?" said Barriss.

"If I told you I'd have to kill you, and I'd hate to shoot a pretty face," said Jaysh, grinning at her.

_"Like my lightsaber wouldn't stop that from happening,"_ Barriss thought. "And the amount?"

"Just a thousand to cover hyperdrive power, plus I could use the company. What do ya say?" said Jaysh. Barriss studied him longer. He obviously looked like he did some kind of shady business, but he was the only one who would offer to take them. Would she accept?

"I want to tell you this now: if any funny business happens on the trip there, I won't hesitate to taking you out," said Barriss.

"Relax sweetheart, I'm not that kind of guy," said Jaysh.

"Alright, but you've been warned," said Barriss.

"I'll remember that," said Jaysh playfully, making a motion as if he was putting her words in his head and locking it. Barriss shook her head and left to tell Ahsoka the good news.

* * *

He was fast asleep by the time they reached the second stop. He'd gotten the engines to work at peak efficiency so that now the ship traveled faster. The junker was more than grateful for his help, thanking him over and over again when he got the chance. Taran shrugged, saying it was no problem. To be honest, he felt immense gratification tinkering with mechanical parts on that scale. It had been way too long.

He was currently in the spare room the Shi'ido had offered to him. He tossed and turned a few times in his sleep before he opened his eyes and sat up.

_"Another bad dream..."_ he thought wistfully.

He had shed down to just his pants to keep cool. Sighing he put on his shirt and coat and left the room, deciding to go out around whatever spaceport they were in. As he walked down the hall he passed by the small purple astromech droid that helped the junker. Taran felt a small stab of sadness every time he saw it. It reminded him too much of R3.

"If he comes back, can you tell him I'm just looking around for the next hour?" said Taran. The droid beeped and went on its merry way. Taran chuckled a little, putting his hat on and walking outside. The spaceport was busy with species from around the galaxy making their entry.

_"Hm, I wonder what planet I'm on?"_ Taran thought. He left the entry of the spaceships out into the city, not even noticing the security guards scanning the pilots and cargo. He didn't stop until he was right outside.

_"This seems so familiar. Where could I..."_ he thought before he halted in his tracks to the city outside. How could he have walked through there without once figuring out where he was. He could see the statue of Aang in the harbor entrance.

Republic City.

He was back home.

_"Oh no!"_ he thought in horror.

Panic and fear gripped his heart like a vice as he found he couldn't move in the slightest. His legs were locked and slightly shaking. His hands trembled violently as he stood outside the entrance. If his heart were not held in by his rib cage it would have burst out.

_"Have to get back on the ship and hide,"_ he thought. He turned around, only to see Republic City police guards checking people back in.

_"Shit!"_ he thought.

He walked with the crowd, deciding to blend in as he tried to find places he could sneak back into. He pulled up his neckerchief to hide his lower face. Still. the panic hit him hard as he searched for an opening.

You are probably wondering why Taran is so afraid of being caught on his own planet. It is quite simple. If his presence was discovered on Elementia not only would the Empire know he was alive, but that his people had been harboring him. It would spell war for them and a war with the Empire was a war knew that the planet could not sustain for long. The Empire had way too many resources to utilize into a war with just one planet and its colonist planet. Knowing the Emperor, he could exterminate them.

He kept to the edge of the spaceport entryway, biding his time to wait for the guard's shift to change.

"Hi mister," said a child's voice behind him. Taran froze in shock and turned to see a nine-year-old girl with grey eyes and black hair. She wore just a grey outfit and black pants.

"You need help?" she asked sweetly.

"Um, no," said Taran, wanting to leave the girl before she discovered who he was.

"If you want to get back in there, you can take that doorway. It's blocked with a metal grate and you might be too big for it," she said. "Are you an earthbender?

"My first time on this planet," he lied.

"Really? So why do you have Earth Kingdom tattoos?" she asked, pointing to them. Taran wished he could kill himself for being this stupid in the span of a day.

He'd forgotten his gloves in the room.

"Okay you caught me, I am an earthbender. I'm from Terra," said Taran. "My parents were from the Earth Kingdom." The girl looked at him like she wasn't buying it. Taran felt his brow beginning to sweat. Suddenly, her face broke into a smile.

"Oh that explains it. Can you metalbend?" she asked. Taran nodded.

"Then it shouldn't be a problem for you. Have fun sneaking in," she said before she turned and began walking down the street.

_"That...was...odd,"_ he thought.

He looked over to where she had pointed to, finding the old entryway. "I'm just glad she didn't notice who I was." He went inside once he was sure no one was watching and slipped inside. The small hallway was cramped, but he could walk normally down it. Soon he came up to the metal grate-fence. He could hear the sounds of the bustling spaceport off in the distance. He put his hands on the fence and began to bend the metal. The metal gave way to him, allowing him to pry it open so that it was big enough for him to slip through. Once he was on the other side he bent the bars back to their original position.

There was a door that would lead him into the spaceports large rotunda area. How he had walked through it without noticing a thing was beyond him. He carefully unlatched the door and opened it, sensing that no one in the immediate vicinity was aware. He opened the door and closed it swiftly, checking once more to make sure no one was watching. Once he was in the rotunda he began to make a beeline to where he knew the junker's ship was located. He slipped his hands into his pockets to cover them.

"Hey, you!" said a voice behind him. He froze, hearing the sound of metal boots behind him. He turned to see the metalbending guard stop in front of him.

"You dropped something," said the security guard, handing Taran a storage chip he always kept in his coat pocket.

"Oh, thank you," said Taran, hurriedly taking the chip away from the guard's hand to make sure he did not get a good look at his tattoo.

"Be on your way. Say, you look familiar," said the guard, inspecting Taran's face, causing Taran to turn it.

"Maybe I remind you of someone," Taran said feebly.

"You do. Hmm, can't put my finger on it. Ah well, be on your way," said the guard.

"Thanks," said Taran, turning swiftly from him and walking on.

He was thanking every spirit he could as he walked through the rotunda area down the hallway to the various ships in port. He swiftly found the junker's ship, finding the Shi'ido at the foot of the ramp. He turned to see Taran hurriedly running towards him.

"Whoa, what's gotten you so fearful? You look like you've seen a ghost," said the Shi'ido.

"Why didn't you tell me we were on Elementia?" said Taran, fighting to get his heart and breathing rate back to normal.

"It was on the destination notepad in the cockpit. Didn't you see it?" said the Shi'ido. Taran mentally slapped himself again. Was he suffering from a sheer case of stupidity/amnesia or the beginning of dementia?

"You're right, sorry I forgot," said Taran, heading onto the ship.

"Is everything okay?" said the Shi'ido.

"You wouldn't understand," said Taran, keeping his back to the junker as he walked into the ship.

He went into the spare room, putting his hat down and sitting on the edge. He gazed at the wall of the room before he sighed heavily. No matter how much he needed to stay away from his home planet, he wanted to come back. He wanted to see the vast expanse of the Earth Kingdom, feel the icy tundra of the Water Tribes, the volcanic earth of the Fire Nation, the cool air of the mountains underneath the monasteries of the Air Nomads, the booming metropolis of Republic City. He wanted to see his uncle, perhaps even see the younglings if they happened to be harboring them.

He clenched his fists, knowing that he could never come back.

_"Would it be too much of a bother if the Emperor and Vader to just keel over die at the same time?"_ he thought, laying down on his bed.

A few minutes later he heard and felt the hum of the ship's engines come to life and the rise of the ship before it launched off into the sky. He imagined the view from outside of the ship as the distance between the ship and the planet increased. The next thing he knew, he felt the familiar jump of hyperspace, reclining a lot more into the mattress.

No matter how soft it was, he couldn't shake the pain away.

* * *

(Two days before Ahsoka and Barriss arrive)

The next few stops came and went with few words spoken between Taran and the junker. Ever since Elementia, Taran became even more quiet and reserved. Though the junker wanted to get to the bottom of it, he knew it wasn't his place to ask. Some people's secrets were better kept as they were: unknown.

As the ship was traveling through hyperspace, Taran came onto the bridge of the ship.

"Coruscant is our next stop," said the Shi'ido.

"That's good. Listen, about Elementia..." said Taran.

"It's alright, I don't want to know. You have your reasons. Was it a bounty on your head?" said the Shi'ido.

"No, just something more personal," said Taran.

"Well I won't pry into it," said the Shi'ido. "Your presence on the ship has been a good one to have. I hope you're able to do what you need to when you get there.

_"You don't know the half of it,"_ Taran thought.

* * *

(Hyperspace)

Ahsoka and Barriss were in the ship's hold playing dejarik. Jaysh was going over some last second coordinates in the cockpit of the ship. Ahsoka had met Jaysh the night before and instantly took a disliking to him. Who could blame her though.

_"Ahsoka," said Barriss, nudging her friend who was still laying her head on the table. Ahsoka looked up to see Barriss and Jaysh standing above her._

_"What?" said Ahsoka, confused as to what was going on._

_"Hi, I'm Jaysh," said Jaysh, reaching out his hand for her to shake. Ahsoka shook it slowly, still unsure as to what was going on._

_"I'm sorry, what are you doing here?" said Ahsoka._

_"He's our...pilot," said Barriss._

_"Pilot?" said Ahsoka._

_"Yep. I'll be escorting you beautiful and extremely attractive women safely to Coruscant," said Jaysh. "On my honor or may a Gamorrean use me as a practice dummy."_

_Ummm thanks," said Ahsoka._

_"Although, Barriss didn't tell me how sexy her friend was. Never really found myself attracted to Togruta before," said Jaysh, his eyes scanning over her. Barriss immediately sensed danger._

_"Um Jaysh, why don't you go get a drink," said Barriss. "On us."_

_"Alrighty. I won't be long gorgeous," said Jaysh, winking at the two of them before he went over to the bar._

_"Barriss, what the hell?" said Ahsoka._

_"Sorry, he was the only guy who would take us," said Barriss. _

_"He gives me the creeps. I'm wearing a cloak and it felt like he could see right through it," said Ahsoka. _

_"Come on Ahsoka. Once we get to Coruscant we won't have to see him again," said Barriss. Ahsoka sighed. What other choice did she have? Wait until someone probably worse than him came around? _

_"Okay but if he does it again I'll-"_

_"Don't worry, I've already covered the ground rules with him," said Barriss. Ahsoka sighed. _

_"I hope this doesn't go south," she thought._

_(Timeskip. The next day) _

_"You sure it was this one?" said Ahsoka. _

_"He told me the dock right by the trading store," said Barriss. The two were walking through said spaceport, not catching any sight of Jaysh. Thankfully, they weren't going to pay him until they actually got to Coruscant. So far they haven't seen any sign of them. _

_"Where in blazes could he be at?" Barriss said to herself. _

_"Hey girls, you missed it!" yelled Jaysh's voice from behind them. They turned to see him waving at them. They hurried over into the dock where Jaysh's ship lay. His ship was a GX1 Short Hauler, a light freighter class. They were reliable, but Jaysh's looked like it could go in for retrofitting, a paint job and other things. _

_"This is her, the Streaking Comet," said Jaysh. "Isn't she a beauty?" _

_"She's...something," said Barriss, trying to think of the right words to say. _

_"Her landing gear is not in the best shape, but it'll do," said Jaysh. Ahsoka looked pointedly at Barriss. Barriss gave her a "Do we have any another choice?" look. _

"So, you mind telling me your stories?" said Jaysh, taking a seat beside them as the two women played.

"Do you mind if I refuse to?" said Ahsoka.

"Sorry, just wanted to break the ice," said Jaysh. Ahsoka saw that he really meant it and decided to oblige him, albeit not with the honest truth.

"Well, Barriss and I have known each other since we were small so we grew up together in a way," said Ahsoka.

"Really? Where at?" said Jaysh.

"On...Cortina," said Barriss.

"Nice place. I grew up in the slums of Coruscant myself before I moved out to some other planets when I was 13," said Jaysh.

"What do you work as?" said Barriss.

"I'm a...trader of sorts," said Jaysh.

"Meaning?" said Ahsoka.

"Someone pays me to move some goods, I do it for them," said Jaysh.

_"Smuggler,"_ she and Barriss thought. It was one of those professions they knew were illegal, but at the same time a negative image rarely appeared in their minds. Besides, anyone smuggling against the Empire couldn't be all bad.

"So how'd you get into that line of work?" said Barriss.

"It came to me. You wouldn't believe what my life was like. There were days when I couldn't even get a meal. I lived out the gutter like a dianoga. I was so glad when I got off planet. I went to Malastare first. That's when I got into the trade. I found I was good at it and I mean really good. That's how you met yours truly," said Jaysh.

"I'm sorry to hear that Jaysh, about your childhood I mean," said Barriss.

"It's fine. Hard to believe I told this to complete strangers," said Jaysh. "What was your occupation?"

"Ummm...security," said Ahsoka and Barriss, take a moment to look at each other before answering.

"Really? Well I guess I can see it since you both give off a "Don't mess with me" aura," said Jaysh, smiling. "Although what I'm curious about is why you two attractive girls aren't taken."

"I'd rather not talk about it," said Ahsoka. She got up and went towards the bathroom, turning the corner to it.

"What's wrong with her?" said Jaysh.

"It's not my place to say, but she lost the one she loved to the war," said Barriss, her attitude slightly down. Jaysh picked up on it.

"Okay, I won't ask anymore on the issue. What about you?" said Jaysh.

"I've...never really...had one," said Barriss.

"You're kidding me," said Jaysh, astonished beyond reason.

"No, I'm not," said Barriss.

"Why?" said Jaysh.

"It was never really one of my focuses in my life," said Barriss. "And after some of the things I did, I wouldn't deserve someone to keep me happy like Ahsoka did."

"Oh come on, I'm sure what you did wasn't that bad," said Jaysh.

"Believe me, it was," said Barriss, her mood darkened.

"I won't press into it, but just know that we all do mistakes in our past. It's what we do now that tells us what kind of person we are," said Jaysh. Barriss was shocked from the words of wisdom that came from him.

"Thank you," she said softly.

"Don't mention it," said Jaysh, flashing her another grin before he began to walk back to check on the flight pattern of the ship.

**Updating weekly**


	3. The Seat of the Galactic Empire

The ship shot out of hyperspace, descending towards the brown planet where thousands upon thousands of lights glowed from their altitude above the planet, indicating it was night. At first, sheer fear gripped him as they made their descent. This was probably the dumbest thing a former Jedi could do. He was literally descending into the heart of the regime that would kill him and others like him in the blink of an eye. Yet, he steeled his resolve. He had a job to do and he was going to make sure it was done, else the consequences would be severe and the fate of the galaxy might be changed.

"I'm guessing this is your first time looking at the planet?" said the junker.

"No, why?" said Taran.

"The gaze you had. It looked like it was the first time you've seen it," he said.

_"Actually I basically lived here,"_ Taran thought. "Oh, it's just every time I come here I can't help but think how beautiful the lights are from here."

"Understandable. It does leave that impact on ya," said the junker. The ship continued to make its descent down. When they passed into the upper atmosphere, Taran couldn't help but think of the titanic space battle that had taken place here.

_"It's seems like it was so long,"_ he thought. The ship continued in its descent, passing through the clouds before they emerged to the planet. It had barely changed since the last time he was here.

The thousands of skyscrapers reaching up like the fingers of a hand towards the heavens, their metallic colors flashing in the sunlight. The giant lanes of traffic that stretched on for miles and miles. The millions of light beaming from the buildings and sub-levels below. Yet, the city seemed darker than it was before. Many memories flooded his mind as he looked out. His gaze turned out to look at other buildings in the distance. They were on the equator of the planet, but still far enough away so that they still couldn't see any of the important government buildings. Taran was glad the junker chose the outlying spaceports rather than the large ones that were literally in sight of the Senate District and other government/military areas.

The junker brought the ship to a hover as he gained clearance to land. He found a vacant lot and began to lower the ship down. The ship landed with a small thud as it parked and the engines winding down. Outside, Taran could see the planet's security forces at their stations checking for any suspicious activities. Taran had seen a few of the new 'stormtroopers' as they were called now. Most of his journeys he had no contact with Imperials, but he saw them every now and again.

"Well I guess this is where we part ways," said the Shi-ido.

"I guess so. You take care now," said Taran, shaking the Shi'ido's hand.

The Shi'ido returned it as Taran went to go retrieve his pack. When he left the ship, he patted the astromech on his head one more time before he stepped off, making sure his hat was on and his gloves. He also drew up his neckerchief for good measure. He waved goodbye to the junker one last time before he walked away to the outside.

At the exit, he saw a few squads of security stormtroopers checking for signs of any suspicious activity. Over the past two years he had noticed a change in their appearance and weaponry. They no longer wore the Phase II armor he had known, wearing a more advanced kind. The helmets seemed almost identical to the T-visor of the Phase II helmets. Their weapons were no longer the DC-15A or DC-15S. Instead they had been phased out in favor of the BlasTech E-11 blaster rifle. Only the troops stationed at Coruscant wore crimson markings on their armor, their armor having extra padding for taking on riots and other acts of civil disobedience than for the battlefield.

Taran was able to pass by them without drawing suspicion. He breathed a sigh of relief as he passed, thankful he didn't have to start a ruckus the second he stepped foot on the planet. The key was for stealth if he wanted to get into the Jedi Temple undetected.

_"Now to find a way closer to the Temple,"_ he thought. He looked around for a place to hail a speeder cab. His actions proved fruitful as a speeder came into his direction. It stopped and he hastily went inside of it.

"Where can I take you to in Imperial Center?" said the cab driver, a Human male.

"Can you take me to a district outside the Senate District?" said Taran. _"Imperial Center?"_

"You mean Imperial City? Yeah I can take you there," said the driver. The speeder leveled up and into the traffic. Taran sat back, letting his eyes rove on the sights.

"First time here?" said the driver, wishing to make small talk.

"No. I used to live here for awhile," said Taran.

"Oh. What brings you back?" said the driver.

"Just here to see an old friend," said Taran. "I left at the end of the war."

"I see. I'm surprised you didn't leave after the battle," said the driver.

"I tried. It didn't work out that smoothly," said Taran. The cab sped on for twenty minutes as Taran continued to take in the sights. His eyes fixed into the distance where a hulking black mass stood just in the distance.

"Isn't that where the Republic palace is?" said Taran, his photographic memory tell him that that was where the palace should be.

"You have been gone awhile. It's the Imperial palace where the Emperor lives," said the driver.

_"That man has a catastrophic ego,"_ Taran thought as the palace came closer.

It was already big during the days of his younger self. Now it was sheer enormous. The black metal gave it a darker persona than the light colors that had originally adorned it that seemed like the Citadel itself. The complex was bigger now, looking like it could hold a a Star Destroyer if it chose to land there. One could see the palace from miles and miles away.

_"Sneaking around might be harder than it looks,"_ Taran thought. He could only imagine the type of security that would be around the area, and the palace was close to the Temple.

The cab kept on, heading what seemed to be towards the Senate District.

"I think this'll be far enough," said Taran.

He was on the edge of the Works district and the outlying districts of the Senate District. Though he'd have a lot of ground to cover to reach the Temple, he knew that the farther away from there he was the less attention he'd draw to himself. He already had a plan for infiltrating the Temple. The cab came to a stop to a shady area that spelled trouble.

"Sure you want to get out here? This area's not really safe, especially for humans," said the driver.

"I'll manage. Thanks for the drive," said Taran.

"That'll be 50 credits," said the driver. Taran gave him the money, adding another 25 for the hell of it.

"Thank you and be careful," said the driver as Taran stepped out.

Taran nodded, turning his back on the taxi and beginning to walk down the street. Many other species were walking around here. A Muun looked at him curiously as if wondering what he was doing there. Taran kept on, passing two scantily clad female Twi'leks who looked at him curiously as well, but winked at him anyway. Taran paid them no mind. He wasn't on this planet to mingle or to have fun.

He stepped into a dark alleyway, making sure he wasn't followed. He also sensed and looked around for the tell-tale signs of any surveillance cameras in the area. Thankfully there were none present. He made sure his pack was secured on his back and readied himself. He used his airbending to shoot into midair, landing on the side of the building. He used a combination of metalbending and the Force to kick from each side of the building in succession. His hands grasped the side of the building, launching himself up again with a burst of metalbending. His left hand grabbed the wire, hoisting himself up to the top of the small skyscraper. Once he reached the level he wanted to look at by perching on the side of the building, he could get a good view of the buildings to the distance.

The Jedi Temple loomed out in the distance. He knew he had a lot of ground to cover to reach it. He took out his electrobinoculars to get a better look. As he peered through the lenses and zoomed in, a pang of sadness hit his heart. The Temple looked like a burnt out shell of its former self, with scorch marks and impacts from rockets spread all around the ziggurat. The five spires were still intact.

He heaved a sigh as he placed the binoculars back into the pack.

_"Better start walking,"_ he thought to himself. Now he wished that he had driven just a tad bit closer.

* * *

He got to a location about fifty clicks from the Senate District and the Temple. The palace complex loomed too close for his liking but he would have to live with it. He was on the sublevels in a heavily non-Human area. He looked around to find someplace where he could rest for the remainder of the night. He saw a sign for a temporary motel/tenement building close by. Making up his mind, he went in. An Aqualish manager was at the desk. He spoke to him in his native language which Taran was able to understand somewhat.

"Hello, I'd wish to take up a room for a few days," said Taran.

_"You have credits to pay for it?"_ said the Aqualish. Taran nodded.

_"Alright. We have a room available, although should you be at your level Human?"_ said the Aqualish.

"I like it down here," said Taran.

_"Whatever you say strange Human,"_ said the Aqualish.

Taran placed down the money needed and the Aqualish gave him a key card. Taran left to go find his room, located on the 8th floor. He got on the elevator and made his way up. Stepping off he headed to his room, but not before he nearly ran into a scantily-clad Togruta.

"Oh I'm sorry for..." said Taran as he tried to apologize for running into her when he looked at her.

The Togruta girl was about 5'7" with the head tails. Her outfit was blue and looked like a bikini with boots that went up to mid-calf on her feet. He focused on her face. Her white pigmentation pattern that adorned her face was different with more of a swirl pattern on her cheeks, her brow and the sides of her face. Her eyes were blue though and that's what had made his breath hitch when he first saw her.

"I'm sorry, please don't be mad," the girl said frantically, fearing for her safety. She didn't know if Taran was a dangerous guy or not.

"It's okay. Be on your way," said Taran.

"Are you sure? I don't know if-"

"Go," said Taran gently. "Accidents happen."

"At least let me repay you for your forgiveness," she said, reaching to her top to begin to take it off. Taran grabbed her forearms and held them on either side of her body as he looked into her eyes.

"Please go," he said darkly. He didn't want to have to use that tone but he needed the message to get across. The girl apologized again, fixing her attire and walking away. Glancing back fearfully at him as she passed. Taran sighed.

_"She almost...reminded me of her,"_ he thought morosely.

He unlocked the door and went in. The room was a small mattress with a simple sheet propped on a frame in the corner and a small kitchenette area close by as well as a small shower unit in another doorway, rust stains all-around. It was crappy, but it would do for now. Taran sighed as he put his pack on the floor and locked the door, locking it more securely with his metalbending. He knew the lower levels too well to make that mistake. He shed off his clothes to get down to just his underwear and climbed into bed. He used his airbending for four minutes straight to cool the room down and slowly drifted off to sleep. He knew when he woke up he had to get to work.

* * *

The sun rose up in this part of the planet. The light eventually traveled down until the lower sublevels could get some of the sun's energy as well. Taran slowly awoke as a ray hit him in the face through the blinds. He sat up and yawned. Twisting his body around to creak his joints and limber up he got out of bed, shedding his underwear. He got into the small shower and began to bathe, reveling in taking the first hot shower he had in weeks. He spent ten minutes bathing himself, turning the water on its highest temperature to where a pleasant burning sensation crawled around his skin. Steam rose in the small unit before Taran shut the water off and stepped out. He wrapped a towel around his waist, using his airbending to dry himself off.

He hastily put his outfit back on, taking his pack with him and exited his room. He got on the elevator and headed down to the lobby to travel outside. He looked around the outside world for a few moments as he thought of his next plan of action.

_"Let's see if we can hack into a security center,"_ he thought, a small smile playing under his neckerchief.

He started to head up the small elevator shafts that took him directly up to the main level. Up here the streets and walkways were bathed in sunlight, the light warming him and setting a fire through his veins. Up here, there were more patrols of Coruscant Guard and stormtroopers. What was more was that everyone on this level looked either more humanoid or were humans themselves. He barely saw any other species up here. However, he needed to find answers.

He looked around and found an Imperial officer on duty at a checkpoint with a squad of stormtroopers. He moved through it and came up to the officer.

"Hi, I'm new on the planet for sightseeing and was wondering if you could answer some questions?" said Taran.

"Alright, but make it fast," said the officer, a captain by the looks of his insignia.

"What's that building in the distance over there?" said Taran pointing to the Temple.

"That was once the Jedi Temple. They used to defend the Republic before they betrayed it and tried to murder the Emperor," said the captain.

"Does anyone still use it?" said Taran.

"None but the Grand Inquisitor. It's off-limits to all others," said the captain.

_"Understandable. Hm, Grand Inquisitor?_ So is there no way for anyone to get in?" said Taran.

"Only guests of the Emperor," said the captain. "Are you quite done now?"

"That's all. Thank you for your time," said Taran. The captain waved him off and Taran continued on.

_"Now to break into an Imperial relay station,"_ he thought. He looked around for the tell-tale signs of security or information buildings. He didn't have to walk or look far. A relay station with a large dish came into view when he turned a block. It was well-guarded with a squad of stormtroopers keeping watch on the outside and even a probe droid hovering near them.

_"My favorite part. Let's see if I still got it,"_ Taran thought.

He moved behind an adjacent building. Checking for any security cameras he found several in the alleyway. He continued walking to display no type of suspicious activity. He lightly tapped his foot on the ground to cause a a garbage bin to tip over. The cameras focused on it, giving Taran the time slot he needed to hop between the two buildings before he came onto the roof. He looked over the side of the building to the relay station below. He saw a ventilation shaft near the top back half. He took off his hat and placed it on the top of the roof near the side. Making sure no one was looking, he leaped down onto the small base. Using the Force to cushion his fall he immediately metalbent the grate off and swiftly climbed in, placing the grate back on.

He spent the next several minutes crawling through the small shaft. He kept going until he came down to what looked like a security monitor. Two Imperial officers were on the station keeping watch on the cameras and sending reports here and there. Taran slowly reached back into his pack and took out his hacking device. He placed the storage chip in the device and connected an extending cable to it. He saw the middle port in the middle of the relay station's controls. He would need it to hack into the network and log into the surveillance cameras interface.

He waited patiently for the officers to leave the room for a momentary moment. The minutes ticked by and they were still doing diligent work. If Taran had not been a natural earthbender and learn the principles of jin he would have went nuts. Instead he calmly waited for the right time to strike.

"Any new reports on the eastern half?" said one officer.

"No, just the usual traffic. Nothing new to report on," said the other. "No disturbances in a long time actually."

"Who would have thought getting deployed here would be this boring. I would have definitely picked even some place in the Outer Rim over this," said the first officer.

"Come on, you know that working here is bound to get you up the ranks quicker. Just do the shitty work and soon you'll be giving order," said the second officer.

"I like the sound of that. Wait, hang on suspicious activity in the lower end alley," said the first officer.

"Finally," said the second office. They both stood up as the first officer commed in to the commanding officer.

"Captain Bel. We have a disturbance on the northern end of the district near the Campella bar," said the officer.

"Copy. Sending a squad over now," said the voice of the captain through the intercom. "Keep me updated on the progression."

"Yes sir," said the officer.

The second officer pressed a button and the security camera's monitor appeared on the big screen. They watched screen intently as a fight soon erupted. Though Taran couldn't see it he could still hear the confrontation that was taking place. The sound of flesh thudding against each other echoed from the live recording.

"A Phindian attacking a Human here of all places? Some beings should learn their place," said the first officer. They watched the fight with sheer intensity. Taran could hear the heavier thuds of the Phindian and the grunts of pain from the Human, a male by the sounds of the cries of pain.

"Call me an unwanted species will you?!" he heard the Phindian roar as he heard punch after punch hit the Human. The next thing he heard was the clatter of armored boots and the sounds of stun blasters going off. He heard the body slump to the floor, assuming it was the Phindian's.

"Well that takes care of that, another day in the Imperial Army," said the first officer.

"That was something. You want to get a quick bite to eat before we got to keep watch again?" said the second.

"Be my guest," said the first officer. The two men walked out of the room, the door sliding closed behind them.

_"Now's my chance,"_ Taran thought.

Working quickly he extended the cable down slowly to the connecting port. The outlet hung directly above it. He used the Force to extend it even further, connecting it firmly. At once encryption keys and security firewalls appeared. Taran busily began to hack into the network to get to security footage. As he got past the security firewalls and other access blocking points, the hacking device saved the data in the chip. He worked furiously to get into the system swiftly before the officers came back. Five minutes of this and he was nearly done. The stolen data was at 90% completion. He just needed another minute to fully integrate into the system. As he decrypted the last remaining defenses, he heard the sound of approaching footsteps.

_"Kriff,"_ he thought. He used his metalbending to seal the doors shut as the two officers tried to get in, the first officer sliding his card. The doors creaked, but wouldn't open.

"What? Is this door acting up again?" he said in annoyance. He slid the card again and still it creaked but wouldn't open.

"That's it. Manual overdrive," said the first officer.

Taran needed just a few more seconds. He frantically got past the last few security clearances before the beep signaled that he was in. A plethora of information appeared on the screen, but he could look at that later. He hitched up the cable just as the door opened. Thankfully the officers didn't see the cable slip into the vent before they arrived.

"I'm calling maintenance next time," said the second officer as he and his comrade got into their seats and looked back at their monitors. Taran slowly retreated back the way he came. He smiled to himself. Step 1 was complete. Step 2 was next once he got back to the relative safety of his room.

* * *

It took him about an hour to get back to the hotel. The Aqualish was there but he paid him no mind as he walked past. Taran got on the elevator and pressed the button for the floor he was on. As the elevator climbed he took a quick look at his device to view the numerous files present on it.

_"This is definitely going to take me most of the night,"_ he thought. The door pinged to signal he was on his floor and he made to move off. He was so busy with the device that he accidentally ran into someone again.

"I really need to watch where I'm going," he said to himself before he saw the same Togruta girl again. This time she looked a little worse for wear. Her eyeliner was smeared as if she was just crying and she had red welts and some slight bruising on her chest. One of her lekku even had bite marks on it. She wore the same outfit from the night before.

"I'm sorry, please I should have watched where I was going," she said fearfully. Taran finally realized why this girl was so afraid of him.

"Who did this to you?" said Taran, reaching out to her lekku. The girl didn't try to stop him. He tenderly touched it and looked at it. It was probably hurting her now but the damage there wasn't going to be permanent.

"I-it's nothing," she said pitifully. Taran seized her by her shoulders and forced her to look him in the eye.

"Who did this," he said slowly and menacingly. The girl cringed in fear before she finally said it.

"An Imperial officer. He bought my services the past three days to relieve him of stress since he's always working in the lower levels," she said.

"Why is he doing this here," said Taran. The girl let a tear fall out of her eye.

"Answer me," he said, his fingers clenching on her skin.

"Because he doesn't want to be seen fucking a dirty alien like me in a respectable place. He rents the room up here and I come and meet him there," she said pitifully as more tears came out from her eyes. "This time he made sure it hurt and he still has me for the night. He told me to go wash up somewhere and be ready to go again."

Taran now understood. He knew the girl was a prostitute of some sort from the night before when she had offered herself to him. However, this type of treatment was unacceptable. Now he knew why she had been so afraid of him. She was afraid that he was like the other chauvinistic males and would have his way with her. Taran took his hands off her shoulders

"Was this the last day?" said Taran. She nodded, her eyes bowed because of how afraid she was.

"Where is he?" said Taran.

"No, please don't get involved. The military will know," she said.

"Don't worry, they won't," said Taran. "Now once again, which room?" The girl looked like she didn't want to tell, but she knew she didn't have a choice in the matter.

"Room 823," she said quietly.

"Wait here," said Taran. He immediately started walking down the hall towards the door she had told him about. He got to the door and stopped outside. He kicked the door open, startling the half-dressed man inside. He had on just his pants. He was brown-haired with a military buzz cut and dark grey eyes.

"Who the hell are you?!" he said startled.

Taran didn't answer as he moved rapidly towards him, punching him in the gut. The man felt the wind get knocked right out of him as he doubled over. Taran kicked his legs from out under him with his right leg, sending the men careening to the ground. Taran then knelt down and grabbed the man by his neck, choking him while punching him in the face simultaneously. His punches resonated from the room out into the hallway as he punched the man over and over again for five minutes straight until he felt the man had had enough.

The man had two black eyes and his face was bleeding profusely and swelling horrifically. He barely resembled the man he looked like when he first knocked down the door. Taran knew he was passed out by now.

"I should kill you you sick bastard," he said.

He lifted him up onto his shoulders and began to walk towards the window carrying his unconscious body. He opened it with the Force and threw the man's body out. He hastily outstretched his hands to catch the body with the Force in midair and began to levitate him towards a dumpster in the alleyway. When he was ten feet above it, Taran dropped him. The man fell in with a thud onto the pile of garbage. Taran looked at him with disgust one more time before he went back in and closed the door, eliminating all signs that there had been a scuffle in the room using the Force to put everything back.

He walked out of the room and went back towards the elevator where the girl was.

"He won't be bothering you anymore," said Taran.

"You didn't-"

"No. Eventually his squad or someone will find him and take him back. He won't heal fast enough to even remember who I was and it won't be linked to you," said Taran. The girl let out a small sigh of relief.

"Thank you, I don't know what to say," she said. Taran knew this was against his better judgment but the poor girl looked like she needed help.

"Come to my room to heal up," he said. He walked towards his room, the girl following him. He opened and walked in, putting his pack on the counter as the girl walked in, holding her arm from how nervous she was.

"Rest easy, not all Humans are trash like him," said Taran, going into his pack to find some spare bacta patches. The girl went to the bed and sat on it. Taran found the patches and came up to the girl. He cautiously put one on the end of her lekku where the bite marks were and another one on her chest.

"You okay?" he asked. The girl nodded hastily.

"Relax. Don't be afraid of me. No one's going to hurt you here," said Taran.

"Why...why did you do that?" she asked.

"Because he deserved it, why else would I?" said Taran.

"No one cares if a whore gets beaten," she said dismally. Taran gazed at her long and hard, his eyes seeming to delve into her.

"What's your name?" said Taran.

"Sherasti, but just called me Shera" she said.

"How old are you?" said Taran.

"I'm 16," said Shera.

"You're too young to be doing this. You don't have to follow this path in life," said Taran.

"What other choice do I have?" said Shera.

"Leaving," said Taran. "Anywhere is better than what they have you doing here."

"That's easier said than done. What would I do?" she said.

"I don't have any answers. If there's a brain in there, which I know there is, you only limit yourself by what others would have you believe. What is it you believe?" said Taran. Shera looked away from him. She didn't know what she could say to him.

"You want to know why I helped you?" said Taran. Shera looked at him.

"You...reminded me of someone. The look in your eyes when you ran into me today told me you needed help no matter how much I didn't want get involved," said Taran.

"Who was it I reminded you of?" she asked.

"She was my girlfriend. She was a Togruta also," said Taran.

"What happened to her?" said Shera.

"It's none of your business," Taran said harshly. Shera instantly backed away from him.

"Sorry, it's a sore subject. I blame myself for what had happened. I couldn't protect her," he said sadly. Shera looked at him with a look reminiscent of shock.

"How...how were you with her?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" said Taran. "You mean why I chose someone outside of my species?" Shera nodded.

"I never cared about things like that. I like-no loved her because she made feel like the luckiest guy in the galaxy to be with her," said Taran, his gaze downcast as he remembered all the memories. "I don't why I'm telling a total stranger this."

"No don't be ashamed. I think it's...unique. To be honest you're the first decent Human I've encountered here," said Shera.

"Do you need anything else?" said Taran. Shera shook her head.

"Are you sure I can't repay you?" said Shera. Taran shook his head.

"Thank you for helping me anyway," said Shera. She got off the bed and made towards the door, but not before she turned around and kissed Taran hastily on his cheek before she went back to the door, opening and closing it as she left. Taran touched the part where she had kissed him.

_"Funny how the galaxy works,"_ he thought. He laid back down on the bed and took out the hacking device, beginning to delve into the files.

* * *

(Imperial City Central Security Center)

A lieutenant on duty noticed a breach in the security system. He moved into see the problem and found the location of where it had occurred. He hastily began filing the report noting the strange activity that had occurred there and went to notify his commanding officer. He looked around to find the captain. He didn't have long to find him.

"Captain, there's been a breach in the security walls," said the lieutenant, saluting his superior and handing him the report. The captain looked down at it before his eyes widened.

"I'll send it up to the general," said the captain. He walked through the base to the top office to find the general. The door slid open, the general at his desk.

"Sir, my lieutenant reports that there's been a breach in the mainframe," said the captain, saluting his superior.

"A breach? Impossible! Our security mainframe's defenses are more sophisticated than any in the galaxy," said the general.

"If you take a look sir, whoever did it tapped into our surveillance data," said the captain, handing the general the report. The general looked at it extensively before his eyes widened.

"How is this possible?" said the general.

"I'm not sure sir. Should we send word to the Chief-of-Security?" said captain.

"Yes, and get into any of our surveillance that was in the area. I want to know who this person, or droid was," said the general.

* * *

The rusty-looking freighter exited hyperspace heading towards the planet's surface. It streaked towards the planet aiming for the equator.

"I know a place to stay at where we won't draw attention from Imperial authorities since we are arriving here illegally. ," said Jaysh.

"That'll be nice," said Barriss. Ahsoka was still in the hold, her gaze on her necklace. In the cockpit it was just Barriss and Jaysh.

"She going to be okay?" said Jaysh.

"She will. She always knows how to," said Barriss.

"You mentioned that you had a shaky past. Care to explain what happened?" said Jaysh.

"It's a long story and I don't really wish to go into it," said Barriss.

"Okay. It dealt with Ahsoka?" said Jaysh. Barriss nodded.

"It couldn't have been that bad right? I mean you two are friends right?" said Jaysh.

"Even now I'm not so sure," said Barriss sadly.

"What you stole something from her?" said Jaysh. She shook her head.

"Got into a fight?"

"Sort of?"

"Wait...did you hit on her?"

"No!" she said.

"Come on, you couldn't have almost gotten her killed for whatever you did?" said Jaysh, taking a wild stab in the dark. He noticed that Barriss didn't react, only turning her head away.

"Oh," said Jaysh.

"It was a horrible mistake and I wish everyday that I could take it back," said Barriss sadly.

"I'm sure you can fix it," said Jaysh.

"It's not that simple Jaysh," said Barriss. "Nothing about me is simple."

"I'm sure it is simple. You just think too much," said Jaysh, focusing back on making the descent.

Barriss thought about his words as the ship started to come down. Jaysh aimed to a small dockyard as the city came into view. From here they could see the important capital buildings way off in the distance, the lights gleaming from them in the nighttime sky. Ahsoka came into the cockpit as she felt the ship descending.

"Back already," said Ahsoka as she came in.

"Let's hope it's for the last time," said Barriss as she saw the Imperial Palace in the distance in Republic/Imperial City.

_"So close to the darkness that almost killed us. To think I was nearly in it,"_ she thought.

* * *

A lone stormtrooper walked inside the 501st Legion Headquarters located between the Imperial Naval Yard and the Emperor's palace. A prime location for the army deemed "Vader's Fist." The stormtrooper calmly walked on through the hallway, his blue markings on his armor detailing his rank and command position and in the pattern of his old uniform before the Phase III armor was adopted. He was a Stormtrooper commander. Only the commanders could where blue markings on their armor, which showed their rank and their prowess above regular troopers. With the Legion comprised nearly 95% of Fett-template clones, his rank had been well-earned. He could now command a regiment of the legion, him and four others sharing the rank in the 501st behind the senior commander.

The men of the 501st had just gotten back from putting down another rebellion in the Outer Rim, crushing it with brutal precision characteristic of their prowess. He walked into his private bunk and took off his helmet to gaze at himself in the mirror. His bleach-blonde hair was longer now and in a buzz cut. He also allowed himself to grow out some facial hair, but vowed to shave it off in the next few days. His gaze shifted to his eyes. They seemed hollow now. After everything he'd been through, serving in the Grand Army of the Republic and now the Galactic Empire, how could they not be. He'd seen thousands die in front of him. How could the notion of death bother him now?

"Commander, Lord Vader wishes a meeting with you," said his subordinate through his comlink transmitter.

He sighed and picked up his helmet, heading towards the forward conference room where he knew he was waiting. The walk didn't take long since his room was part of the Officer's Quarters level. He walked into the slide door, seeing Lord Vader gaze out of the window. His black suit made him formidable and cast dread on all those who saw him, but he himself was never afraid of it. Neither was Appo before him.

"You summoned me Lord Vader?" he said.

"Yes. Are the operations your regiment complete?" said Vader, turning towards him.

"Yes sir. The men are bunked down," he replied.

"Good. After that incident rest is needed if we are to carry out further plans of action," said Vader.

"Right sir," he said.

"If you can spare some men, a squad is needed to pursue an incident. It seems that someone hacked into the security mainframe from a beacon tower a few clicks from her. Have those men aid in the investigation," said Vader.

"Yes sir, I'll have them on it in no time," he said.

"Dismissed," said Vader. The commander saluted before turning away.

"And Commander Rex," said Vader. "You have been my best man in the legion. I only trust you." Rex faltered a little. Only he and a few others knew of Vader's true identity.

"Thank you Lord Vader," said Rex before he walked out of the room.


	4. The Mysterious Being

Barriss, Ahsoka and Jaysh made it out into the night air of Coruscant. Though the Undercity had its drawbacks it was still a good area to travel for sightseeing. Plus, it was the only place Ahsoka could go without experiencing any difficulty. Still, they kept their hoods up to keep from exposing themselves. They were able to see all the surveillance cameras that lines the corners despite them not being seen by the average passerby.

Being back on the planet that had given her so many memories, both good and bad. The most recent would haunt her forever. She could feel the presence of the Emperor, even from here. She couldn't wait to find out what they needed to do and get out as fast as possible. Barriss sensed her fear and placed a hand on her shoulder to reassure her.

"Where to now?" said Jaysh.

"I guess finding a place to stay would be nice," said Barriss. They had paid Jaysh when they had arrived, and though he had business to attend to he had decided to accompany them along the way.

"I know a place. It's cheap and a little sketch though," said Jaysh.

"That'll be fine. We weren't looking for something high-class," said Barriss.

"Alright then. Follow me," said Jaysh.

The girls followed him as they walked. From here they saw all kinds of species from across every part of the galaxy. However, down here, they could see that most anyone they saw what some Humans considered "alien." Besides Jaysh there were barely any Humans down here and only a handful of near-Humans.

"Jaysh, I know about the Empire's pro-Human policies but why are there barely any Humans down here?" said Ahsoka.

"Most of them live on the surface or in the high-rises. No sense in coming down to the questionable areas when you effectively have the power in the galaxy," said Jaysh.

"But why? He has non-Humans in the Senate and at his side," said Ahsoka, referring to Mas Amedda.

"Maybe it's not him, maybe it's the policy makers. I don't know who to blame, but it's the way things are now. The powerful don't care how the regulars live," said Jaysh. "I liked it a lot better when this pro-Human thing was just in the minds of a few crackpots and windbags."

"What's your stance on it?" said Barriss.

"To be honest I really don't give a damn. One species can't make an empire or a republic. Any that tried to end up failing from internal strife," said Jaysh.

The three of them kept walking until they got to a tenant-like hotel building called Starlight. The place was run by a female Weequayan looking at her log books wearing the simple attire of her home planet.

"Well if isn't Gilla," said Jaysh. She looked up and gave Jaysh a disbelieving look.

"Jaysh, you sneaky load of bantha fodder, what are you doing here?" said Gilla.

"I have a business transaction to undertake and my two new friends here needed a place to stay," said Jaysh, motioning to Ahsoka and Barriss who had taken their hoods off upon entering.

"How in stars did you get entangled with him?" she asked them.

"Not much of a choice," said Barriss and Ahsoka.

"And here I thought we were friends," said Jaysh in mock hurt.

"Well whatever the circumstances you can't be held responsible. I will admit the room aren't that grand or flashy," said Gilla.

"We'll take a room regardless. Our stay here is only temporary," said Ahsoka.

"And I'm assuming you have the credits to pay for the stay?" said Gilla. Ahsoka and Barriss both nodded.

"Then enjoy your stay here," said Gilla. Ahsoka and Barriss hastily paid for their stay, thanking Gilla.

"Gilla, may I talk to you in private?" said Jaysh.

"Better make it fast while I still have patience for you," said Gilla.

"I'll see you girls later. Have a good night," said Jaysh.

"Thanks for the lift," said Ahsoka and Barriss, walking towards the elevator to their room which was located on the fourth floor.

"You know besides making a bad first impression, Jaysh is actually an okay guy," said Ahsoka.

"He does have a kind of charm to him," said Barriss.

"If I didn't know better I'd say you kind of like him," said Ahsoka.

"What? Me? P-preposterous, I-i could never..." said Barriss, stuttering a little, a sign Ahsoka knew meant she was nervous or flustered.

"Relax Barriss, I'm just pulling your leg," said Ahsoka, laughing a little.

"You know, that's one of the few times over this time that I've heard you laugh," said Barriss. Ahsoka thought about it, realizing that Barriss was telling the truth.

"You're right. I know I've been...overbearing and downright depressing these past two years," said Ahsoka.

"It's alright Ahsoka, there's no need to apologize," said Barriss as they reached their room. She opened the door to reveal a room with two mattresses. It was actually a decent room with a bathroom connected to it.

"Not bad. I'd say it's a lot better than Ord Mantell," said Ahsoka.

"It is. Dibs on first shower," said Barriss.

"Kriff," Ahsoka cursed.

The two girls shared a small laugh as they put their belongings on their own mattresses. Barriss shed off her clothes and walked into the bathroom. Ahsoka took off her cloak and lay on her bed, gazing up at the ceiling. The last time she was on the planet, she was fighting for her life in the Temple and escaping with Barriss. The memories came back to her again, she letting out a shuddering sigh and moving onto her side.

_"I wish I knew what it was we were looking for,"_ she thought.

Even now she still didn't know how Master Plo Koon had been able to contact her from the Netherworld and what it was he was referring to. She would meditate on it after she had showered. Barriss came out, a towel wrapped around her body and drying her hair with a smaller one.

"It's actually quite nice in there," said Barriss as she dried off.

"Can't wait to see for myself," said Ahsoka.

She shed off her clothes as well and went inside. The steam from the bathroom had fogged up the mirror. It created a nice atmosphere for her to get into. She walked into the wash area and turned on the faucet. Hot water immediately hit her body, causing her to sigh from the feeling. She found the soap and used the unused washcloth to lather it up and begin washing her body. The water helped to soothe her as she reveled in having a hot shower. Most places was either a turbo shower or cold water. She was going to enjoy this.

The majority of her time in there was spent letting the water rinse her rather than actually washing herself. As she sighed as the fog billowed around her, she was hit with a vision.

_She was out side the Temple, gazing at the battle-scarred edifice from the ground level. Suddenly she was in the main hallway before she rapidly moved up the multiple staircases until she stopped near a corner on the top upper floor. She was gazing into the corner, but didn't know why. Suddenly it began to glow with a blue light, getting brighter and brighter until it had washed over the entire vision. Then a hauntingly familiar voice she hadn't heard since his last words to her that fateful night._

_"Find me!" it yelled._

She was thrown out of the vision, clutching the faucet for support as she breathed heavily from her experience. Her eyes stared at the tiles widely as she tried to regain her senses.

"Taran?" she said quietly to herself.

She knew it was his voice, she was sure of it. Yet, the thought of his voice only made her sadder. She shut the water off as she stepped out to find a towel. She dried off her montrals and lekku before she wrapped the towel around her body before she slumped to the floor on the wall, putting her hands up to her head. What had it meant? And why did she hear Taran's voice? It had been too long since she had heard it.

_"The Temple? Is that what it was talking about?"_ she thought. She thought of the hallway she had been in. It was definitely the upper level to the Temple that she had taken before she had gotten to the top. Had there been something she had missed?

She sighed as the questions formed in her head. None of this was making sense. Did she have to go to the Temple? Was there something in there that she needed to get?

She walked out of the bathroom, towel still wrapped around her as Barriss was combing her hair on her bed.

"Are you okay?" said Barriss upon seeing Ahsoka's expression.

"I'm fine...it's nothing," said Ahsoka. Barriss could see something was bothering her.

_"It's probably because the events that happened here...twice,"_ she thought sadly. "Do you want to talk about it?" Ahsoka shook her head.

"Well...there is one thing. I had a vision in the shower. It lead me towards the Jedi Temple. I think whatever it is we need to find is in there," said Ahsoka.

"The Temple?" said Barriss. Ahsoka nodded.

"Getting in there is near suicide. It's like trying to break into the palace itself," said Barriss.

"At least let's do some scouting to see what we're up against," said Ahsoka. Barriss thought about it. Perhaps some reconnaissance might be in good order.

"Alright, I'll find it out," said Barriss.

"Why just you?" said Ahsoka.

"Ahsoka, no offense but you're a Togruta on Coruscant. You'll be a walking target for any slimeball who's been brainwashed with these Humanocentric aspects for the past two years," said Barriss. "I might get an eyebrow raised but Mirialans count as Near-Human to them. It's the only way without drawing suspicion."

"Ugh, fine," said Ahsoka, sitting on the bed next to Barriss. She really hated the new attitude of the Human populace in the Empire. How it had gotten out of hand like this she didn't know.

"I know it sucks and you have every right to be mad, but we have to do this cautiously if we're going to succeed," said Barriss.

"I know Barriss. You're right. I just hate not being able to do the things I used to be able to do," said Ahsoka. Barriss gave her a small smile.

"Remember Geonosis?" said Barriss. Ahsoka smiled as well.

"How could I not? Nothing better than getting buried alive," said Ahsoka. The two shared a small laugh.

"And the brain worms right after that was just icing on the cake," said Ahsoka.

"Please don't remind me about that," said Barriss. "It's bad enough we had to go through that TWICE!"

"The second time was worse. I swear if it wasn't for Ta-" said Ahsoka before she stopped. Barriss immediately noticed the crestfallen look on her face. Even now so much as talking about Taran made Ahsoka remember everything.

"He...did so much for us," said Ahsoka, reminiscing.

"He did, and we'll never forget him for all he's done, especially for you," said Barriss. "I know I won't."

"You're right about it though. I can't keep threatening to burst into tears every time we mention him. I have to move on," said Ahsoka.

"It's hard, but I'll be there to guide you every step of the way," said Barriss. Ahsoka gave her a small smile.

"Thanks Barriss," said Ahsoka. She reached over and hugged her, surprising Barriss immensely. Slowly, Barriss returned the hug. It was the first time the two had hugged since when they were both in the Jedi Order. The emotions that rang up in her brought her nearly to the point of tears.

_"I truly was a monster for what I did,"_ she thought sadly.

"Barriss, are you alright?" said Ahsoka, feeling a mood change emanating from her.

"Yes I'm alright, it's nothing," she said quickly. "Just a little happy you trust me to do this."

"After all we've been through, why wouldn't I?" said Ahsoka. Barriss looked down. Ahsoka knew what she was talking about without having to hear the words themselves.

"We'll talk later about it Barriss. Right now let's get some sleep," said Ahsoka, hoping that the notion would calm her down a bit.

Barriss nodded as Ahsoka went to go and put on her night clothes, Barriss doing the same. The two climbed into their respective beds. Ahsoka was about to turn off the light switch with the Force before Barriss asked her a question.

"What do you miss about him the most?" said Barriss. A long length of silence followed. Barriss had hoped that she had not overstepped as Ahsoka looked at the ceiling. Barriss was about to turn over before she heard her.

"His eyes," Ahsoka said quietly. "It was like I could peer into him, feel his every emotion and thought through them. Sometimes they would look at me lovingly, other times protectively when we were in danger, and other times they had some kind of mischief in them when he was planning something. I could never get enough of them." Barriss listened intently to her every word.

_"So that must be what love is like,"_ she thought.

"It's funny, sometimes when I'm in my world I still feel like he's there watching me," said Ahsoka, smiling a little.

"I was also curious about something else. Did you two...?" said Barriss.

"Did we what?" said Ahsoka.

"Nothing, it's not that important," said Barriss, now feeling embarrassed for even thinking it.

"Come on, out with it," said Ahsoka, rolling over to face Barriss.

"Um, how can I put this frankly. Did you end up having sexual intercourse?" said Barriss. Though due to her skin tone one could barely tell, but Ahsoka's cheeks flushed with sheer embarrassment.

"Uhh that's really personal...I m-mean well we...w-we were...oh look at the time. Night!" said Ahsoka, hastily rolling over away from Barriss and turning the lights on. Barriss would have laughed at the outburst, but she respectfully held in it.

_"Knew it,"_ she thought, smiling slightly to herself as she closed her eyes.

* * *

The one thing that could never change about Coruscant/Imperial Center was the traffic. Speeders and hovercars flying endlessly above her head. The many pedestrians walking along its stone and metal streets carrying out their own business or traveling to new locations. Up here she didn't need to wear her cloak, opting to go out as she was in her usual outfit. No one here would remember who she was, or so she hoped. Meanwhile Ahsoka was waiting for her in the Undercity below, mirroring her steps.

On the surface Barriss was making her way towards the Jedi Temple. It was still a distance away, probably less than two clicks judging by the distance. Yet it stood proudly despite the events that had occurred there in the last days of the Republic. Squads of stormtroopers and Coruscant Guards passed by, none seeing her walking down the street as a hindrance or cause for curiosity. To them, she was good enough to be classified as Human.

Barriss kept walking until she got to a military checkpoint. A squad of stormtroopers stood there along with an Imperial officer.

"Halt, no one except authorized personnel is allowed through here," said the officer, outstretching his hand. Barriss stopped. She made sure the listening piece was in its location.

"Sorry, I don't understand," said Barriss.

"The Temple is only permitted for the Grand Inquisitor, agents of the Emperor or any of the Emperor's guests. No others are allowed towards the complex," said the officer. "Now I must kindly ask you to depart."

"Thank you sir," said Barriss, nodding her head. He nodded in approval as she left. As she was walking back down the way she came she spoke to Ahsoka through the comlink.

"Did you get all of that?" said Barriss.

"Yes. This might be a bit harder than we thought," said Ahsoka.

"Oh you don't say," Barriss said sarcastically.

"There's got to be a way in there," said Ahsoka.

"Let's meet up somewhere and see what we can do," said Barriss.

* * *

The security feed he had hacked into was providing him all he would need. He had been working on it for two days accessing every known surveillance inside the Temple. Currently there was no activity whatsoever going on besides the occasional patrol by a squad of stormtroopers or a pair of armed sentinels of some kind with force pikes. He hadn't even been able to see this Grand Inquisitor the officer had told him about. He would have accessed the databanks and scoured around for them, but this would prove to be just fine for him. As he looked at the feed, he was recording it into a separate memory file. The way he saw it, two hours would give him plenty of time to get in there, sneak to the holocron's location and back out.

Seeing the inside of the Temple from the numerous angles of the camera triggered some memories to come back, both good and tragic. He breathed in heavily as he continued to work in the safety of a back alley. The amount of data read "Complete" once he had recorded everything he needed.

"Perfect," he said to himself. At that moment a loud growl came from inside him. He put a hand on his stomach as he could feel and hear his stomach growling. He hadn't eaten in an entire day.

_"Damn it, this is what happens when you're too into your work Cyneran,"_ he thought to himself.

He hastily put his device back into his pack and slung it over his back, walking out of the alley to find a diner. He had went to where Dex's Diner had been to see if the lovable and wisecracking Bessalisk was still there. Instead he found the area leveled for construction. Instead he decided to find something close by so as to continue on with his work.

He only had to walk around for a few minutes before he found a diner. The diner was called the "Bespin Cloud." He went into it to find a nice establishment where all kinds of species were present, even Humans. Despite being close to the surface, there was fraternization going on between them all. He smiled a little to himself. At least here in Imperial Center everyone could get along.

He sat down at the stool in the counter, pulling his neckerchief down to reveal the rest of his face.

"What would you like for today?" said the waiter, a Human male. Taran browsed the menu quickly.

"I'll get a Nerf burger with a side of chips and a Corellian ale," said Taran. "Oh and also a glass of water."

"Coming right up," said the waiter.

He went off to and place the order as Taran waited patiently. He came back in less than a minute with his two drinks. Taran hastily gulped down a large part of his water before he began taking a few sips from the ale. As he waited he watched the water begin to condense on the glass. It had been awhile since he had used his waterbending. He used his peripheral vision to see if anyone was paying attention before he used his finger to make a small droplet of water slowly circle the glass, picking up and merging with other droplets until formed the size of a coin. Taran then sent it on the glass, slowly swirling it around. It brought him a small amount of happiness to be able to do this again.

"Ah, you must be an Elementian," said a voice behind him.

Taran instantly stopped what he was doing and froze as he felt whoever it was said that take a seat next to him on the counter. It turned out to be a female Clawdite, the Clawdite not bothering to change her appearance.

"Sorry, did I startle you," she said.

"A little," said Taran, keeping his head down.

"It's quite alright. I've never seen one of your kind before, only hear about the exploits you and the powers you have," she said. "What was that you just did with the water?" Though he wanted to cut this conversation short, Taran realized from her demeanor that he had nothing to fear from her.

"It's called waterbending. It's one of the four bending forms on our planet. Bending allows us to control our elements in any state," said Taran.

"That's quite amazing," said the Clawdite, very amazed at his words. "How do you get it?"

"Some of us are born with it. Others aren't. Even now we're still not sure how we are given our power," said Taran.

"What do you think?" she asked.

Taran shrugged. "I think the Spirits bestow it to us, though I don't know why."

"Your culture is interesting. I hope to travel there sometime," said the Clawdite.

"You'll like it. We're friendly to all beings, not just our own," said Taran.

"Really?" said the Clawdite.

"Yeah. Barely any Humanocentrics there," said Taran. "Then that way you don't have to change into something you're not to fit in." She was shocked by that statement.

"How did you know about that?" she asked surprised.

"I have a way of reading people," said Taran.

"Thank you for those words. It's the nicest thing a Human has said to me all my life when they see me in my true body," said the Clawdite.

"Glad I could be that person," said Taran. The waiter came back and carefully placed his food on the counter before him.

"I'll leave you to your food. It was good talking to you..." she said, not knowing what name to call him.

"Sung," said Taran. "After my father."

"Glad to meet you Sung. You have a good day," said the Clawdite, turning around and walking out of the front entrance.

Taran allowed a smile to grace his lips, reminiscing already about the happiness he was able to give the Clawdite with just a few simple words. He turned back to his food and began to chow down. He needed the high calories to sustain him for the rest of the day if he was going to be working on his 'project' for the rest of the day.

_"I think I'm going to need to do a field test to see if this is going to work,"_ he thought as he munched on the burger.

* * *

"We could go in there using the sewers," said Ahsoka.

"They might have them blocked up or at least guarded," said Barriss.

"Sneak past the checkpoint?"

"Impossible. There's way too much open space and there is surveillance everywhere."

"Flying?"

"Are you even trying now?"

"Ugh!" said Ahsoka, planting her face in her arms on the table.

"Having a brain crash?" said Barriss.

"The worst..." said Ahsoka.

"We'll figure something out," said Barriss. The two were currently in a bar in the Undercity as live music from a Bithan band was playing for the enjoyment of the patrons.

Suddenly an idea came up in Barriss' head.

"They did say that only agents of the Emperor could come in," said Barriss. Ahsoka looked up at her.

"You're not thinking of..." said Ahsoka.

"It might be our only option. We just got to find someway to pass through credentials," said Barriss. "Are your hacking skills any good?"

"They're rusty but I think I might be able to do something to give us false identities. It's not like they need to know our real names, just for them to see we're with the Empire," said Ahsoka. "I'll see if there's a way to get into a relay station."

"And I'll find some identification cards to use," said Barriss. She reached into their pack and she pulled out the black and yellow mask. The same mask she had used to disguise herself from Ahsoka when she had framed her for the bombing.

"That mask still gives me the creeps," said Ahsoka as Barriss placed it on herself.

"At least after this I'll never use it again," said Barriss through the mask, standing up. "Good luck Ahsoka."

"And you too Barriss," said Ahsoka.

* * *

Barriss was currently heading towards a military outpost off the edge of the Senate District. The plan was to find some Imperial officers, swipe their cards and be on her way. It seemed simple, but nothing is ever as simple as it is in your head. As she approached the base she saw the squads of stormtroopers patrolling as well as a few officers. Now all she had to do was wait to isolate them and see if she could lure them out. As she waited she noticed a strange light coming out of an alleyway nearby before it went dark. She wondered what it was.

"It's probably nothing, just forget about it," she said to herself.

The light flickered on again before disappearing. It did it a few more times before her curiosity got the better of her. She calmly stuck to the shadows of the setting sun and headed towards the source. As she she approached she couldn't help but feel a presence nearby, a Force-sensitive one. It was neither a light presence nor a dark one, yet it felt strangely familiar. She looked around the corner to see what it was.

A man was kneeling next to a wall, a handheld device of some kind plugged into a cable. He seemed to be viewing something on there. His hat obscured his head from behind

_"I need a better look,"_ she thought to herself.

She looked up at the adjacent building and found some handholds she could use to get an angle at whatever it was he was seeing. She crept closer and closer from the side of the building before finally she was able to see whatever it was she was looking at. From what she could tell, it looked like surveillance camera footage of a hallway in the base. Suddenly, the screen tapped out and came back on with another recording of the same hallway.

_"What is going on?"_ she thought to herself.

The man flipped a switch on the device and the screen turned off, he stowing it back in his coat. He got up and stretched a little, revealing he had on a black neckerchief over his lower face and black goggles covering his eyes. He picked up a pack and slung it over his back before he began to walk down the alleyway. As Barriss prepared to follow him, he stopped. He pressed his hand on the side of the building she was on as. At first she thought he was stopping to think before suddenly his head turned to the side and he saw her.

_"Kriff!"_ she thought. The man stared at her for a few slow, painful seconds. She knew what he was about to do before he did it. He took off running down the alleyway. Barriss jumped off her handholds and gave chase.

_"He's seen me. Now he might report me to whoever. He's definitely not Imperial but he's something else,"_ she thought as she ran to keep him in sight. The man swiftly turned a corner to hopefully lose her. Barriss kept on him, making sure she didn't lose sight of him for over a second.

"Ahsoka, come in!" said Barriss to her comlink on her wrist.

"Barriss, what's wrong?" said Ahsoka.

"I was heading at the military base and I saw this person looking like he was hacking into the base. I tried to follow him unseen but he saw me and he's now on the move," said Barriss.

"Turn on your beacon. I'm on my way," said Ahsoka.

Barriss clicked her button on her wrist, a yellow light beginning to beep. They had installed these on their comlinks in case either of them were in a spot of trouble. Barriss continued running at full blast. The man she was chasing was only twenty feet in front of her. He made another hard right, Barriss still able to keep up with him. The man realized he had hit a dead end, but he still kept running which Barriss found odd. Suddenly he jumped off from one side of the wall and used his leg strength to push off and jump to the other side. His momentum in full gear, he used the Force to help him catapult from each side of the building, the jumping getting him to reach higher and higher on the walls. Barriss began to use the same method he was doing. The man jumped onto the rooftop and began running. Barriss reached it a few seconds after he did and the chase resumed.

The two played the game of cat-and-mouse on the rooftops. The man jumped from rooftop to rooftop, sometimes buying a few more precious seconds of space from Barriss. Barriss kept right on him, not relenting from the pursuit. She was fully panting in her helmet now as the pursuit increased. She now fully knew the man was a Force-user judging from the way he was able to clear whole rooftops with ease. Still she wondered what it was he was doing.

The chase came to an end when Barriss cornered him at the edge of a rooftop with no other buildings in sight to jump from. He stopped and looked down, Barriss edging closer to him. Suddenly, he jumped into air towards the levels below. Barriss raced to the edge to see him land on a passing speeder. He was getting away from her, and fast. Not if she could allow it. Barriss jumped off the edge to land on a speeder of her own. The startled Dug inside looked at her in surprise.

"Drive," she told him.

He was too scared to even think of disobeying and kept on his course. Barriss could still see him up ahead, though there was some distance between them. She jumped from her own speeder to land on another one, and then another one after that. The man realized what it was she was doing and began to do the same. They began to rapidly jump from speeder to speeder, the man trying hard to shake her off.

He jumped onto another speeder before he accidentally slipped on the smooth surface. He fell off but managed to hang on to the edge by his fingers. The speeder kept racing forward regardless of his current position on its hull. Barriss used that time to keep jumping, startling a family of human travelers while jumping into their hovercar and onto another speeder. The man was able to pull himself up and get to the top of the speeder, turning to see Barriss literally one more jump away from him. Thinking fast he leaped off of the speeder and began to fall down towards the multiple levels below.

_"What?!"_Barriss thought as she watched him plummet down to the multiple layers below.

He fell until he was seven levels below before the unthinkable happened. Air seemed to shoot out of his hands and propelled him onto the street, landing on top of a Talz. The Talz grunted in pain and tried to scream at the man, but the man was already running towards the dark shadows. Barriss, amazed, jumped off the speeder she was on and landed on the street four levels above him.

_"I'm not losing him,"_ she thought to herself.

* * *

_"That had to have been a Dark Side Adept,"_ Taran thought as he caught his breath.

He had been testing to see if the hacking he had done had borne fruit. He had taken previously recorded files and had integrated them into the interface of the current feed, ergo making the cameras see events that had already transpired rather than what was currently going on. It had taken some time but the trial had proved successful. He was about to go back to the room and plot more on the plan when he felt the all too familiar presence of someone watching him. He turned around to see a figure in a black and yellow mask and dark clothing looking down at him. He didn't have to tell himself to get out of there before his legs moved for him. The chase had been harrowing and had pushed him to his limits. Finally, he resorted to using his airbending to get out of there as fast as he could.

As he walked in the darkness of the levels beneath the top level of the Undercity he reflected on the events that had just occurred. He knew that whoever that was who was chasing him wasn't going to give up. Yet, their presence had seemed familiar to him but he couldn't put his mind to it.

_"I'm going to have to kill them. They can't know what I'm doing,"_ he thought as he took out his blaster and put it in his left hand while his right grasped his lightsaber. He calmly walked deeper into the maze of corridors to find the right place to do battle.

* * *

_"Where could he be at?"_ Barriss thought as she traveled deeper into the lower levels.

She could feel his presence. Judging by it, he was close by. She carefully walked through the vast corridors, keeping an eye out for him. Soon she came into a vast circular room with a semicircular dome. The room was large, stretching for 100 feet in every direction in the epicenter. There were old metal computing machines and dashboard scattered around. She could feel his presence was here. She took a step forward, scanning over the debris of the room.

Suddenly a blue blaster bolt streaked past her head, causing her to duck. A few more shots hit the derelict machine she was crouched under. Barriss looked up to see where he was before she had to duck again from another shot fired at her. She rolled to another machine, the man firing at her again and again. Finally she jumped up, drawing her lightsaber in midair. The man dove away to her left as she landed just where he was a second before. He took one look at her lightsaber before he discarded the blaster near his pack and drew his lightsaber. The green blade was shown momentarily before he pressed the attack.

* * *

Taran's opponent met his strikes blow for blow. Green met yellow over and over again. It was a classic duel with lightsabers.

_"Seems really strange, but I really miss this,"_ he thought to himself.

He pressed his attacks on his opponent relentlessly. His opponent deflected each slash and thrust aimed at her. He could tell it was a woman by her outline through the cloak and clothes underneath. She suddenly aimed a slash at his head, which he ducked under. He didn't know who she was, but he wasn't about to lose. Too much was at stake.

He and her fenced around the other, the hum and whir and clash of their lightsabers resonating around the room. They weaved in and out of each other as if dancing with each other. The woman made another slash for his legs, Taran reverse-gripping his lightsaber to block the blow. He then began to utilize Shien-grip to keep his opponent off him and to also confuse her. His opponent seemed to be well-versed in the technique for her blows rained down towards him while he could barely block them and press his own attacks.

Her lightsaber struck near the hilt and Taran was forced to retreat. He jumped onto one machine and on a dashboard before he landed on the ground, his opponent right behind him. Taran tried an advanced move. He struck a blow towards her head, which she deflected. He then allowed her to make a strike towards his body. Quick as a flash he made a full body sweep with his legs to kick hers out from under her. She jumped and came down towards his face. He rolled out of the way, his hat falling off from the effort. He got to his feet in time to block her next blow. She struck again, Taran using his agility to backflip away from her and land on top of a raised slab of metal. She struck the edge, causing him to vault in a spin in the air. He landed back on the ground and continued his assault on her.

As he deflected another slash, she surprised him by aiming a kick at his legs. He dodged it, but then he was pushed hard into a machine by a Force push. He regained focus fast, seeing her come at him again.

_"That's it, it's now or never,"_ he thought.

She came at him again, charging towards him. He waited for it, his lightsaber to his side. When she was close enough his foot stamped on the ground. A piece of metal under her foot shot out, causing her to lose balance. She crashed to the ground on her back. Taran took the opportunity to move forward. She tried to get up and slashed at him. He caught the blade and twisted around it, kicking it out of her hand. He then sent a gust of air that knocked her to the ground. His foot pinned her neck, causing her to begin to choke. Her hands pried at his foot, but she might as well have been trying to make a bantha move.

Taran caught his breath as he stood over her, his lightsaber pointed at her chest. Though his mind screamed at him to end it, he had to know who was this woman who was chasing him.

"Why were you chasing me?" he demanded.

She made no effort to speak. Taran's left hand inched cautiously to her mask. The girl tried frantically to pry her hands off of him, her legs kicking in a vain effort to get him to move. He pressed down harder, making her begin to cough. His fingers found the end of the mask and he hastily ripped it off. His gasp was audible enough for her to hear as he gazed into her face.

Barriss Offee lay pinned beneath him, her eyes staring wildly at him in a plea for mercy. His lightsaber hand froze. His eyes widened underneath his goggles as he raised his foot enough for her to breathe properly.

"Barriss?" he said, shock and surprise evident in his tone.

_POW!_

Suddenly, he felt the hardest kick he had ever experienced in his life kick him straight in his midsection. It was no surprise that he was knocked back a good fifteen feet and over the side of a machine to the ground. He groaned as he clutched the area where he had been kicked, his teeth. He looked to see where the source of the kick had come from. What he saw made the world around him stop in time. His heart raced, sending blood at a faster rate than normal. Everything went dark around him but her. He could scarcely even remember how to breathe himself. She helped Barriss up to her feet before she advanced towards him, drawing her lightsaber.

"Who are you?" Ahsoka demanded. Taran sat up on his elbows steadily, breathing from the ferocity of the kick and because of who he was looking at. Her lightsaber pointed at his chest.

"Wait," he said groggily, stretching out his hand to stop her.

"Start talking now," she said fiercely.

"Ahsoka, wait," he said. At that, Barriss and Ahsoka froze. Ahsoka was stopped momentarily in her tracks by her name leaving the man's mouth. What made her shocked even more was that his voice was familiar as well.

"How...how do you know me?" said Ahsoka, lowering her lightsaber down just a little.

"I know almost everything about you," said the man, sitting up. He removed one of his gloves and held it out for her to see. Ahsoka used the glow of her lightsaber to get a closer look. She gasped when she saw the Earth Kingdom tattoo on her hand.

"It...it couldn't be," she thought.

"I could never forget about you. You were my best friend and the only woman I could ever truly love," he said.

His hands moved up as he brought his neckerchief down to reveal the lower half of his face. Then, he moved his goggles up to his forehead to reveal the rest. Both Ahsoka and Barriss' eyes opened in heart-stopping shock as they saw him. His green eyes were a dead giveaway to his identity, as well as the scar on his face. Ahsoka came forward slowly, her lightsaber falling out of her hands. Her form was trembling but still she walked. She knelt down in front of him, her breath hurried. Her eyes began to water with tears.

"T-Taran?" she said weakly. Taran gave her a small yet sad smile, giving her a nod.

"Yes Soka," he said softly, his eyes beginning to tear up as well. She sprang on him, hugging him fiercely as the tears ran down her cheeks. Taran held her tightly as well, his own tears streaming as well. Her light sobs echoed in the room as she buried her head into his neck.


	5. Reunited

They didn't know how long they had been holding each other and crying together. All they cared about was how they were now reunited. She had long since stopped crying, just resorting to holding him to her tightly. To the both of them, it was as if the last piece of the puzzle was finally placed and once again whole. The feeling of reuniting with the one you love is a surreal moment that could not be replicated by any means. It seemed as if they were both in the afterthought of a nightmare when one toughened it out long enough for the dream to occur. They wanted to believe that this was a fantasy, but instead they enjoyed the sheer bliss of reality. She clutched him hard as if afraid that he was a figment of her imagination. Instead what she felt was his body, his skin, his hair, everything that signified he was right there with her.

"Taran?" said Barriss.

She had let them have their moment out of respect for their feelings. She had truly been moved to see them reunited again. Taran opened his eyes and looked towards Barriss. His look did not say he was happy nor angry to see her, more puzzled than anything.

"How did you get out of the Temple alive?" said Taran. Ahsoka pulled back enough to look at him.

"We have a lot to talk about," said Ahsoka.

Barriss sat near them as Ahsoka began to tell Taran of their adventures throughout the galaxy. She started off from when she had been captured after the Temple. She told him how she and Barriss came up with an escape plan to get out, the dianoga, her meeting with Chuchi and then making it off planet. Then she told himof how they had managed to survive for two years. It had taken her almost an hour to fill him in on every detail but Taran eagerly listened to her every word. Then she told him about her visions about the Temple, which caused Taran's eyes to widen.

"Do you know what it's about?" said Ahsoka.

"I hid the second holocron in there when An-Vader was chasing me," said Taran. "My previous life held me regain my memory about where I hid it."

"That explains what Master Plo wanted me to come here," said Ahsoka.

"Master Plo?" said Taran. "How is that possible?"

"I'm not sure either," said Ahsoka.

"You both came here to get it?" said Taran. The two girls nodded.

"Wait, you said regained your memory?" said Ahsoka.

Taran began to tell them of what befell him after his duel with Vader at the Temple. He recalled how the Quarren had found him barely clinging on to life and had nursed him back to health and the amnesia he had gained from the head injury. Then he talked of how he had slowly regained his memories back over time and his travels in the galaxy. He told them of various adventures he had went on and other crazy tales of the past two years. Barriss and Ahsoka could scarcely believe it themselves. It had truly been an eventful time for him

"Then I got onto the planet from a kind junker and found a place to stay at while I did my work. I was hacking into their base to see if my plan of getting into the Temple would work, then I saw Barriss in her mask and thought that she was a Dark Side Adept," said Taran. "Then...well you know the rest." The battle scars from their fight were all around with blaster marks and the scorch marks from where their lightsabers had cut through the metal.

"That explains the reaction," said Barriss.

"Sorry about that," said Taran.

"It's alright, you only did that because you thought your life was in danger," said Barriss.

"So...you two are okay now?" said Taran, still wondering how Ahsoka and Barriss had managed to team up despite their previous history. Taran knew that Ahsoka could hold grudges, especially one that hit her closer to home. He himself didn't really know how to feel about.

"Yes," said Ahsoka. "If it wasn't for Barriss I wouldn't have gotten out of the prison alive." Taran looked at Barriss.

She felt as if he was judging her, her gaze looking downcast towards the ground.

"If Ahsoka trusts you, then I do too," said Taran, smiling a little.

Barriss felt a small smile of her own form. Taran made to stand up, but he went back down groaning, his hand clutching his midsection.

"Are you alright?" said Ahsoka, immediately concerned.

"I'm alright. Forgot how hard you could kick," said Taran, chuckling to himself a little as he reminisced their numerous training sessions years ago. Ahsoka laughed a little as well, helping him get to his feet.

"Well, it's about time I can finally say that I'm taller than you," said Taran. Ahsoka smiled, hugging him again. His arms wrapped around her again.

"Let's get back to the surface. We can talk more up there," he said.

* * *

The night air of the Undercity hit them as they walked out. Barriss took to the front with Ahsoka and Taran behind her. Taran's hat was strapped to his back by the chin strap around his neck, his pack there as well. Their hands were joined tightly together, fingers interlaced. They kept a sharp eye for any signs of stormtroopers or other agents. After the chase Taran and Barriss had endured they would be lucky if no security forces were in the area trying to verify what had occurred. Sure enough a few Coruscant Guards were in the area along with several Imperial officers.

"Move like a bystander," said Barriss.

They made their way through the crowd of people who stood curiously by wondering why there were soldiers in the area. They kept their heads down as soldiers asked any witnesses what had transpired. They calmly walked by without any interruptions before they resumed their walk down the street.

"That chase must have been intense," said Ahsoka.

"You can say that again," said Taran and Barriss. They walked a few more blocks until they stopped at a table near a cantina to rest and think of their next plan of action.

"What have you been doing since you arrived here?" said Ahsoka, sitting close to him.

Taran reached into his pack and retrieved the handheld device. He put the device in the middle of the table and turned on the display. A stream of files showed up.

"I've been hacking into their system to get their recordings of the Temple precinct. Once I copied their files I would reintegrate them into the current feed, giving me a time loop to sneak in, get the holocron and get out again," said Taran. Ahsoka and Barriss were amazed.

"Our plan was...a lot more dangerous than that," said Barriss.

"How dangerous?" said Taran.

"Knock out some Imperial officers, take their clearance cards, give us identities as Dark Side Adepts and get in," said Ahsoka.

"I...have no comment for that," said Taran.

"Give us some credit, it took us awhile to come up with something," said Ahsoka.

"Well since there's no way I'm letting you two do something that dangerous we can do my plan," said Taran.

"We were thinking the same thing," said Barriss and Ahsoka. A man walked out of the cantina and noticed them there.

"Ahsoka! Barriss!" said Jaysh, smiling when he saw their familiar faces and coming towards them.

"Who is that?" said Taran as Jaysh sat down at their table.

"And who are you?" said Jaysh, just noticing Taran sitting there.

"Uh Jaysh, about this..." said Barriss. She and Ahsoka didn't know what to tell him. Should they tell him who they were and who Taran was or try to keep him in the dark? They looked to each other before finally sighing.

"Jaysh, we have to talk," said Barriss.

* * *

It took them near an hour to explain everything to him. He asked numerous questions and they answered them for him. They revealed to him that they were once Jedi Padawans and why they were on the planet. At first Jaysh thought they were kidding, but once they showed him their lightsabers he knew they weren't kidding. Ahsoka then introduced Taran and who he was. They even told him of the true status of the Emperor and Darth Vader and their plan to get into the Temple. Once they filled him in on everything, he was left in a state of shock.

"Are you alright?" said Barriss as Jaysh looked at them wide-eyed.

"Yes, just trying to process all of this," said Jaysh.

"We didn't mean to lie to you about us Jaysh, we just didn't trust you with knowing who we were," said Ahsoka.

"It's fine I get it, you're not the only one who had to hide who they were," said Jaysh. "I just wasn't expecting...well this."

"We're sorry," said Barriss.

"It's alright. Can't believe this though...the Emperor, the Clone Wars, everything," said Jaysh, slumping back in his seat. "This hologram or whatever is important?"

"Very," said Taran. Jaysh sighed, deep in thought. The three of them were wondering what he was thinking.

"If you need a way out once you get it, you found your guy," said Jaysh.

"What? Really?!" said all three simultaneously.

"Why not? I already enjoy your company enough," said Jaysh.

"You don't have to do that Jaysh," said Barriss.

"Why? You need a way out and I can gain a little payback against the Empire. It's a win-win," said Jaysh.

"Thank you," said Taran.

"My pleasure Sir Bendy," said Jaysh. "I'll be back in a little bit, need to finalize some things with a client in there."

"Sir Bendy?" Taran said to Ahsoka. Ahsoka shrugged, not knowing where that cam from. He got up and was about to walk back into the cantina when he accidentally ran into a Zeltron.

"You mind watching it?" she said.

"Geez sorry," said Jaysh, a little annoyed. She made to go into the cantina before she caught sight of the other three, specifically two of them. Taran and Ahsoka caught sight of her as well.

"No way," they said simultaneously as they stood up the girl squealed in alarm and ran to them. Barriss stood up, her hand going to her waist where her lightsaber was buckled. She was surprised, and so was Jaysh, when the Zeltron ran up and hugged both Ahsoka and Taran.

"By the galaxies I didn't think I'd ever see you two again," said Leila, hugging them fiercely. Taran cracked a smile, even Ahsoka did. "I thought you both had died."

"Almost. Did the younglings make it out okay?" said Taran once Leila let them go of her death hug.

"They got there safe and sound," said Leila. She was currently wearing her uniform for the cab company she worked for. "Although I'm wondering what are you doing here? This is the worst place for you to be at."

"We have to take care of some business here," said Ahsoka.

"I won't ask what, but nothing brings me more joy that you two are alive," said Leila.

"Um, is there something I'm missing here?" said Barriss.

"Oh, Barriss this is Leila. We bumped into her the night before the Temple was attacked and she helped smuggle out the group of younglings we were protecting," said Ahsoka.

"Oh, okay," she said, her hand going back to her side.

"Who's your friend? She's kind of cute," said Leila. Barriss' cheeks turn a slight pink from her words.

"Sorry to disturb you but is everything alright?" said Jaysh.

"It's alright, just catching up," said Taran.

"Who's your friend?" said Leila pointing to Jaysh.

"Name's Jaysh. I had your acquaintance when you ran into me less than a minute ago," said Jaysh.

"Oh right, sorry about that. I had just gotten off from work with a bad customer. Hmm, not a bad on the eyes I see," said Leila, obviously checking him out.

"Why thanks," said Jaysh, smiling.

"What say me and you get a drink?" said Leila, coming closer to him and using her fingers to 'walk' across his chest.

"It'd be my pleasure," said Jaysh in a flirtatious voice. "Be back in a bit." The two walked into the cantina while Taran and Ahsoka could only watch.

"What just happened?" said Taran.

"Leila happened," said Ahsoka. She turned to see Barriss glowering over at the cantina entrance.

"Barriss? You alright?" said Ahsoka.

"I'm just fine," said Barriss, though her tone gave off that she was a little angry. "Let's get back to the hotel."

"You sure y-"

"I'm fine!" Barriss persisted, turning away from the cantina and past them, heading down the direction of their hotel.

"Is there something going on I'm not aware about?" said Taran as they walked behind her, keeping a good ten feet behind Barriss

"You didn't notice did you?" said Ahsoka. Taran shook his head. Ahsoka smiled sadly.

"Still as oblivious as always," she said, interlocking her fingers with his.

"Wait...you don't mean that..." said Taran.

"Nothing major, maybe a small crush," said Ahsoka. "Either way, she's not happy about it."

They walked behind her in silence as they made their way back to where the two of them stayed. As they were walking, Taran noticed a few stares he and Ahsoka drew from a few species. He blocked them out of his mind. He wasn't going to let their opinions ruin this. He had just been reunited with the love of his life; nothing would keep him from being with her again.

"Nice tail right there!" yelled a Human from across the street as he gazed at Ahsoka lustfully. His group of three friends snickered to themselves. Ahsoka felt his hand tighten on her hand. She looked to see him gritting his teeth. She also felt a rise in anger from him. She knew it was a dangerous sign from him.

"Although you could do better. The slut probably would do anyone at this rate if she's jumping species," the Human continued. As he laughed, his friends tried to warn him before he found himself hoisted up by his throat as Taran choked him with one hand.

"What was that again? I couldn't hear you the first time," he said through gritted teeth. His friends did nothing as they watched.

"I-s-so-can-," the man tried to say.

"Not getting anything out of you," he said darkly.

"Taran, stop!" said Ahsoka, she and Barriss coming to a stop behind him.

She knew something bad was going to happen the second she felt his hand slip from hers and could only catch a glimpse as he had sprinted there at a blinding speed and grabbed the man by his neck. Taran continued choking the man.

"Taran, please, he's not worth it," said Ahsoka, coming up and touching his shoulder. Taran breathed a few times before he let the man go. He fell to the ground as his friends rushed over to him, picking him up.

"Get him out of my sight," said Taran.

The others complied without question and dragged their friend off. Taran's hand went to the side of the building where it had taken place, breathing as he fought to keep his anger down. Ahsoka and Barriss had watched it all, fear evident in their eyes as he turned to them.

"Sorry," said Taran. "I should have just ignored them."

"Come on, let's get back," said Ahsoka, taking his hand again.

* * *

They arrived in the hotel room Ahsoka and Barriss shared, the girls and Taran putting their cloaks and his jacket on the clothe's rack.

"I'll go in and take a shower and leave you two to talk awhile," said Barriss. She headed into the shower as Taran and Ahsoka both sat on her bed. Their hands were still joined, but they sat in silence. For once, Taran didn't know what to say to her. He kept looking from the ground to her and back, but no words could he think to say. Ahsoka could see he was struggling as well.

"Taran...what happened to you during your travels?" she asked softly.

"What do you mean?" said Taran. She turned to face him fully.

"Because you would have never done something like that," said Ahsoka.

Taran understood what she meant. He had noticed it too, the change in him. He remembered why he had chosen to do things like that in case anyone had provoked him.

"It started back a year ago on Nimban," said Taran.

_Taran was drinking water in a cantina at a table by himself. Other patrons of various species, mostly Nimbanese, Weequayan, Rodian and others were around him as well, fraternizing or drinking. He was the only Human in the establishment, but no one seemed to pay him mind. He sighed to himself as he lay his head on the table._

_Suddenly, he felt someone push him over before his senses had caught wind of it. He was knocked to the ground, the table falling over. He looked up to see a large Weequayan looking down at him._

_"What are you doing in here Human?" said the Weequay._

_"I-I just wanted to get some water," said Taran, sitting up._

_"Hasn't your species caused enough?" said the Weequay, advancing on him. He seized Taran by his collar and hoisted him up._

_"I don't want to fight you," said Taran._

_"Funny, because I want to show your high and mighty species how weak you are," said the Weequay. _

_His fist collided with Taran's face two times before he punched him in the gut and sent him into a table, toppling it over. Taran tasted the blood in his mouth as he got on his hands and knees, wiping it out of the corner. The Weequay was one him before he could do much else, kicking him in his side and causing him to knock all the air out of his lungs. He then grabbed Taran by the leg and threw him into the adjacent wall. Taran slumped to the floor, watching the Weequay advance to him._

_"So is this how you're going to let him get away with this?" said his ancestor's voice._

_"What other choice do I have?" Taran thought._

_"Kill him. He won't stop until you're dead. No one will care about you," he said._

_"I can't. It's not right," Taran thought._

_"It's that kind of thinking that got you where you are now. Think your lover would still be around if you had done what needed to be done?" said his ancestor. Taran clenched his fist._

_"That's n-"_

_"It's the same. Let him beat you, let him kill you. It's not the first time you've been useless and it won't be the last. Just remember what happened after you had failed. You'll never get those screams out of your head," said his ancestor. _

_"No!" he yelled in his mind. _

_His hand quickly shot to the ground, forming a sharp piece of stone. The Weequay charged at him, aiming his fist at him. Taran dodged to the side, yelling as he brought the stone into the side of the Weequay's neck. The Weequay made a strangled noise in his throat as he tumbled over. Taran used his body strength to get him fully on his back. He wildly began to stab him in his neck repeatedly. The Weequay's limbs shook as he fought to get in a breath of air, but all that would come was blood. His blood hacked out of his mouth as Taran kept stabbing him over and over again, the stone having already pierced his artery. _

_The red blood spurted onto his hands and some that flew out when he removed the stone flew onto his front from his stomach to his face. He didn't stop. As he looked down into the dying man's face, he couldn't help but imagine it was Vader's face. All he could see was him as he kept stabbing. Finally the Weequay stopped moving as his head slumped to the side, Taran still stabbing into his dead body. Finally after a few more seconds, he stopped. He breathed heavily as he looked at what he had done. Strangely, he felt nothing from it. He turned towards the gathered crowd, his yellow eyes blazing as blood dripped from his hands onto the floor. The red blood on his face made his appearance even more frightening as the patrons backed away from him as he moved to get his pack. _

_"I'm never letting that happen again," he thought. _

Ahsoka had listened to his story with shock. He also told her of other violent things that had befell him over time. She couldn't believe that he was capable of doing those acts.

"By then, I never backed away when a fight was about to occur. I've even tapped in to my hidden power a few times when I was training to see what powers I could utilize in case I ever needed them," said Taran.

He looked to Ahsoka, but the look she had on was one of shocked fear. She had told them of the methods she and Barriss had to use to survive, but they had never killed someone when provoked.

"Why?" said Ahsoka. Taran hung his head, his eyes looking at the floor of the carpet.

"Because the one time I hesitated to do what needed to be done, I lost you," said Taran.

What are you talking about?" said Ahsoka.

"Vader and I were about to engage in our last pass at each other. I was hurt and I was exhausted, but I knew that in this last moment that one of us are possibly both of us would die. We charged at each other and we swung. I had everything. I was focused and ready to do the deed. But at the last second as our blades came at each other, I hesitated. I remembered all the memories we had, all the adventures and good times we shared. Even after he betrayed us and killed our friends and more that night, I couldn't bring myself to kill him," said Taran sorrowfully.

"And because of that, I was completely helpless while you and him fought. It wasn't until after I regained that memory that I realized because of my compassion, I allowed this to happen. I thought I was the reason why you had died and everyday I had to live with that guilt," he said, his eyes beginning to water.

"Taran," she said softly, her hand touching his face and guiding him to face her. A tear escaped his eye. She wiped it away gently.

"You're not useless," she said gently. She hugged him again, burying her face into his neck. He hugged her tightly as if he was afraid she was going to disappear.

"I...I-I'm just so glad that I get to hold you again. Everyday I'd remember how I saw your body get thrown over the side. I had frequent nightmares. Some were so bad that Barriss had to help me get back to sleep. I kept seeing that night replay in my head: Master Sinube, Bruck, Tia, you, all gone and just me left. I thought I had failed you when you needed me the most. I could never get over it," she said softly.

Taran and her held on to each other, their heads rubbing against each other from time to time as they took the time to revel in the feeling holding each other once again.

"We're together now, that's all that matters," she said to him. They pulled back to look at each other. For the first time that night they noticed the physical changes in the other. They saw how their features were maturing.

"You've grown," she said, rubbing his cheek as well as the bit of a hair on his chin. "Never would have thought you'd have facial hair."

"I thought it would help to disguise myself a bit more, plus it makes me feel older," said Taran. She smiled, her hand going to his scar. She traced the line going down his eye.

_"Just like his,"_ she thought sadly.

Her focus went from the scar to his eyes, the same green eyes she had missed terribly. Her focus then shifted to his lips. She began to lean forward slowly. He noticed her movement and leaned forward too, their eyes closing as their lips met again. Fireworks and all kinds of explosions went off in their senses as their lips met after a two year absence. If they were able to describe the feeling, they couldn't. They pulled back a little, still close enough to where their lips were almost touching.

"Wow," they said quietly before their lips met again hungrily.

Their arms wrapped around each other again as their lips met again, and again, and again. Small smacking sounds could be heard from each kiss they planted on the other. They were so lost in their passionate kissing that they didn't hear the door open from the bathroom.

"Ahem," said Barriss, her new set of clothes on. Ahsoka and Taran instantly pulled back, blushing furiously.

"Sorry," they both said, embarrassed.

"It's quite alright," said Barriss, smiling at the two of them. "Who's next?"

"I'll go," said Ahsoka.

She got off the bed, finding her new set of clothes to slip into once her shower was over. Taran watched her go into the bathroom. She turned back to him, giving him one last smile before she closed the door behind herself.

"Haven't seen her this happy in ages," said Barriss, sitting on the edge of her bed facing Taran.

"She told me about her nightmares," said Taran. "How bad were they?"

"Some just had her waking up in the middle night panting. Really bad nights were when she'd wake up screaming. She never really could move on from what she saw that night," said Barriss. Taran remembered it vividly. The sights he saw would haunt him for the rest of his life.

"I wish I could have known you two were out there," said Taran.

"There's no way you could have known. We faked our deaths. Not even the Empire knows we were alive, especially you as well," said Barriss.

"Barriss, there's something I'm still curious about. Why did you want to help?" said Taran.

"I wanted to set things right, even if I could never fully do it. I know no good deed would ever wash away the sins I committed, but trying would have made what was left of my life bearable," said Barriss. Taran studied her. If it wasn't for Barriss, Ahsoka would have been killed just like she had told him.

"How did you survive that fall?" said Barriss.

"Even I don't know," said Taran. "I think what might have happened is that I was conscious enough to probably bend so that the fall didn't kill me on the spot, but I must have hit my head hard enough to black out instantly and go through amnesia."

"It's still amazing. After hearing what happened to you from Ahsoka any other being would have been killed," said Barriss.

"I guess I'm just really hard to kill," said Taran, smiling softly. "Don't know why I find the thought amusing."

"We cope with things in our own way. It really is good to see you back Taran," said Barriss.

"Barriss...about our last meeting..," said Taran.

"It's alright. After all that I had done, I deserved it," said Barriss.

Ahsoka came out of the bathroom wearing a new pair of the pants she wore and her leather top as she dried off her montrals.

"Guess it's my turn. We'll go over the plan when I get out," said Taran.

"Sounds good to me," said Ahsoka.

"I second that," said Barriss.

He went towards the bathroom, giving Ahsoka a quick peck on the cheek as he went past. Ahsoka smiled as he gave her one last lingering look before he went in.

"Someone seems happy," said Barriss. Ahsoka blushed, sitting down on the bed next to her.

"I just can't believe. I always had dreams that one day we'd meet again, but now it's a reality," said Ahsoka.

"I understand completely. I'm surprised you're not in there with him now," said Barriss.

"Come on Barriss, I couldn't do that to you," said Ahsoka. Barriss paused to think about something.

"Ahsoka, what do you feel when you're near Taran?" said Barriss.

"What do you mean?" said Ahsoka.

"I mean, what kind of aura is he giving off?" said Barriss. Ahsoka's senses searched the shower.

"I feel him, but it doesn't feel completely the same," said Ahsoka.

"I sensed the same thing during our fight. You don't think he-"

"No, it doesn't feel like the dark side. He's still him," said Ahsoka. Barriss thought for a moment.

"Ahsoka, you should spend some alone time together," said Barriss.

"Barriss I can't do that to you," said Ahsoka.

"He did say he had his own place to stay at while he was here. Some time together without the third wheel would do you both good," said Barriss.

"You're not a third wheel Barriss. You're our friend. We'd never consider you that," said Ahsoka. Barriss gave a small smile.

"Thank you Ahsoka, but for tonight don't think about me. Think about just you and Taran and nothing else. I want you to reconnect with each other," said Barriss.

"Are you sure?" said Ahsoka. Though she wanted to be alone with Taran, she still cared about Barriss.

"Positive," said Barriss, her hand reaching to Ahsoka's shoulder. Ahsoka smiled, hugging Barriss. Barriss returned the hug.

"Thank you Barriss," said Ahsoka.

"You're welcome Ahsoka," said Barriss just as Taran walked out of the shower with his previous clothes on, tying his dreads back and letting a few frame his face.

"Sorry am I interrupting something?" said Taran, amused.

"Not at all," said Barriss as the two released each other.

"Ready to go over the plan?" said Taran.

"Taran, how about we go over it tomorrow instead?" said Barriss.

"Are you sure?" said Taran. Barriss nodded.

"We'll talk about it in the morning. For now, why don't you guys go have some alone time together," said Barriss. Taran looked over to Ahsoka, who smiled and nodded. Taran smiled back.

"What are you going to do Barriss?" said Taran.

"Probably see some of the night time activity around, probably stay here and watch a holodrama or two. It's been awhile since I last saw one," said Barriss. Taran made to say something.

"Just go you two lovebirds, I'll be fine," said Barriss, smiling at him amusingly. Taran smiled.

"Thank you Barriss," said Taran.

* * *

"Is there any security footage of the incident?" said Rex as he and Commander Fox surveyed the the recordings of the day in the sector in the headquarters of the Coruscant Guard.

"There's some, but it won't show everything that happened. All we caught was the traffic disturbance," said Fox. An aide fast forwarded the footage to when one man-sized figure had jumped onto a speeder, followed by another slightly smaller figure. They then watched as the two leaped from speeder to speeder.

"Definitely a woman chasing a man. Those jumps don't seem like a regular person could do that Fox," said Rex.

"I was thinking the same thing too Rex. I'm really hoping my gut is wrong," said Fox.

They watched as the chase escalated until one of them nearly fell off and the other gained on them. They then watched as the man pushed off and down towards the lower level. The next action they saw caused them to gasp in shock. Though they couldn't see it clearly, something definitely shot out of the man's hands that propelled him into a street on the lower levels.

"That...that was..." said Fox.

"The Force or something very similar to that. We need to post an alert that possible Jedi infiltrators are on the planet," said Rex. Yet, it still didn't feel like he was 100% sure that it was the Force he saw.

"Think there's a connection between them and the breach in the network?" said Rex.

"It's possible. The system was hit again just a few minutes before this occurred. I don't believe in coincidences Rex," said Fox.

"We need to get the Palace under lockdown. If they are Jedi, they might be trying to assassinate the Emperor," said Rex.

"I'll place all my units on high-alert around the area and release bulletins on the appearance of the two suspects," said Fox. "We'll have my best analysts looking to see whenever another breach appears."

Rex nodded as Fox moved on to give orders to his men. Rex looked at the freeze-frozen image of the man. He could not see his face due to the hat, but yet he couldn't help but feel that he knew the stance he took.

_"Maybe it wasn't the Force. Only one group of people I know who can do that in midair,"_ he thought. His thoughts went to...

It couldn't be.

* * *

Ahsoka and Taran walked into the hotel room he was in. The Aqualish at the desk noticed him coming in with her, but shrugged it off.

"Sorry, it's not much compared to your place," said Taran.

"It's fine," said Ahsoka reassuringly.

She placed her cloak on a coat pin on the wall, Taran doing the same to his cloak and placing his pack and hat on the counter. They had just gotten back from eating at quiet little diner for a quick snack. They weren't bothered there and it was good meal to eat together as they talked more about their experiences. It was shocking to them both that they had been within a few kilometers of each other on Klatooine having both been there finding two bounties on the same planet.

Taran turned to see Ahsoka sitting on the mattress. Her attire was slightly provocative yet still pleasing if she ever walked outside in public. He also noticed the necklace she still wore around her neck for the first time.

"I feel really oblivious now," said Taran.

"Why?" said Ahsoka, making room for him to sit down on the mattress right beside her. He pointed to the necklace.

"I just noticed it," he said, lightly touching the crystal with his two fingers. A small smile graced his lips.

"I've worn it everyday," said Ahsoka, her hand touching his hand. "I always felt like you were there whenever I wore it."

Taran continued gazing at the crystal before he looked at the wearer. His eyes and her eyes met. Light-green met sky-blue again for probably the hundredth time, but they didn't care. They leaned in again, their lips finding each other softly again. With that kiss, they hungered for more. When they pulled back, the look in their eyes told all.

"Think we can make it work on here?" said Taran, indicating to the mattress. Ahsoka looked at it to get a feel of the measurement. She turned back to him with a mischievous glint in her eye that would have made him proud.

"I'd like to certainly try," she said before they pressed their lips to each other again.

**Next chapter is ALL lemon, well 90%. Skip if needed. If not, enjoy :) Also review. And if you're here for flames, I appreciate the criticism but at the end of the day, B$#$H it's my story. **


	6. Just Like Before

Their boots were long gone somewhere on the floor as they furiously kissed each other like their lives depended on it. He was laying on top of her, arms holding him up above her as her arms were wrapped around his back. Their lips never ceased to stop touching each other as their hands soon went from their original positions to roaming around each other. His hands traveled to the exposed parts of her body as hers traced the outline of his form above her. Taran's hands slowly moved down to her breasts covered by her top. She moaned, her lips parting slightly. He used the moment to move his tongue to lick her upper lip as her tongue joined his.

Their tongues slowly wrestled with each other, tasting her sweet flavor again. Her tongue pushed into his constantly as they slicked around to taste the other. Hers traced around his teeth, feeling the sharpness of his canines as his founds hers. It was during this kiss that the two had literally forgot to breathe. They pulled back, breathing heavily as their eyes fixed on each other.

"That was something," Ahsoka said breathlessly.

Taran smiled, kissing her again. Ahsoka gave into the kiss, kissing him repeatedly before her hands went to his chest and pushed up. He got off her, sitting across from her as she sat up to face him. She gave him a coy smile before her hands went to the back of her top where the zipper was located. She alternated her hands as she brought it down until the line ended. Once it was down she used her hands to pull the top off, exposing her front to him. Taran felt his heart race from the sight of her.

Her breasts befitted her body. They were slightly larger than the last time he'd seen them. Round and firm, the size of oranges on his planet. Her grey nipples begged his attention as they were hardened from the cool air of the room. Her flat stomach, tightened from her active lifestyle, allured him with her slight hourglass shape and natural curves that displayed her beauty and strength in a hypnotic combination. Soft, yet strong. Taran's eyes could scarcely capture how beautiful she looked.

"Someone's definitely grown," he said heatedly.

Ahsoka smiled, finding his hands and bringing them to touch her breasts. He squeezed them tenderly, causing her to let a moan erupt from her mouth. As he continued to massage them his hands heated up to give his ministrations added warmth.

"Mmm Taran," she sighed. He smiled, loving the reactions he was getting from her. She sighed from the feeling again before her hands went to his shirt.

"This off now," she demanded playfully.

He chuckled as he and her both took off his shirt at the same time. He tossed his carelessly to the floor, revealing himself to her. The years had been good to him. He had a lean yet muscular build, his muscles seeing him train harder than he had ever done before. Her hand felt down his pectorals down to his abs, feeling the hardness underneath his skin. Her eyes then wandered to the scar that went down his body. Her fingers lightly traced the outline. She looked up to him, her hand still on the scar.

His forehead touched hers as they looked into their eyes. So much pain and loss they had suffered, but they were here together now. Nothing was going to stop this moment for them. Their lips captured each other again as they sighed into the kiss. Pleasure rocketed through their nervous system as their heart rates raced. His hands went to her hips as hers went around his back. The feel of her breasts pressed against his naked chest caused an involuntary moan from him. The feeling of it drove him wild inside.

Ahsoka's mouth went from his lips down to his neck. She kissed around, causing small moans and heated breaths to escape his found the pulse point on his neck that she remembered was one of his sensitive spots. She bit it lightly before she began to suck on the spot.

"Ahsoka," moaned Taran.

His hands went to her back as she continued to kiss and light suck the point and other places on his neck. She found himself pushed down onto the mattress with her on top of him. She straddled his waist as she continued to suck viciously on the spot that had Taran breathing heavily and his moans to reach higher volume. She kissed the spot one more time, kissing up his jawline before her lips kissed his hard. She pulled her head back after kissing him for a few more seconds, kissing back down his neck to his chest, kissing and lightly sucking on any part she could find.

"You're driving me crazy," he said breathlessly.

She smirked into his chest before she found his nipple, sucking lightly that caused his hands on her back to clench. She played around with it for a few more seconds before she kissed down the upper part of his scar that had him inadvertently buck into her as she ran her tongue along the line.

"Oh spirits," he lightly moaned.

Her tongue ran down his body as she moved back until she straddling his legs. She kissed and licked around his abs, living how they rippled underneath her touch. As she did this, her hands went to work on his belt. She clipped it off and began to pull the pants off of him. He lifted his hips and his legs to get them off. She tossed them to the floor before looking down on Taran's form.

"I see you've grown as well," she said playfully, her hand caressing the bulge in his underwear.

Taran and her laughed a little as she stroked up and down his member through the fabric. This caused him to moan lightly. Her left hand caressed his member while her right hand crept into his underwear. She teased around there until she found the prize she was looking for, grasping it firmly in her hand.

"Aw!" Taran moaned.

She felt his member twitch in her hand over and over again until it relaxed in her grip.

"Definitely grown," she tittered.

She slowly stroked up and down, causing his moans to increase in volume. She kissed up and down his chest as her hand worked him. Taran moaned from her ministrations. His hands lightly clenched the sheet of the bed as she moved in intervals. She would do slow strokes, increasing her speed until her hand was moving rapidly, causing him to louder as he felt his climax approaching before she slowed back down. She always made sure to slow down, her strokes timing with the volume of his moans and how his hips jerked up as he got closer to his peak.

This went on until she began to feel the precum on her hand. She stopped, withdrawing her hand and lightly licking it. Taran looked at her as if asking why she had stopped.

"I'm still the only one part way dressed," said Ahsoka, one finger in her mouth as she sucked on the last of his essence. Taran smiled.

"Come here you," he said playfully, his arms wrapping around her as he kissed and sucked at her neck furiously.

She giggled and moaned as she fully lost herself to him as he hit one of her hotspots. He turned them around until her back was on the mattress and he above her. He kissed at her neck as she moaned beneath him before he moved on down to her collarbone. He nipped at her collarbone a few times to have her giggle a little from the tickling sensation before he moved down and envelope her right nipple. She squealed as he sucked hard on it before his lips sucked softly on it, running his tongue along her pebbled nipple.

Her breath came out in light pants as she lost herself to her own little world, surrendering to him. He suckled there for a few more seconds before he switched to her unattended breast, his hand massaging her breast. He rubbed it soothingly, sometimes lightly pinching her nipple to cause her to grip onto him and release a moan for his ears to hear. She lightly called his name as he suckled there for nearly a minute before switching again and repeating.

The minutes ticked by as he gave one last tug and went up to kiss her on her lips. She sighed into it as he rubbed her breasts together with his hands, hands that had strengthened from his personal training yet were still soft to the touch. Their lips smacked together as they kissed fervently. As they kissed, Taran's hand moved from her breasts down to her stomach, caressing her sides before finding the hem of her pants.

He began to pull them down as he sat up on his knees, she lifting her hips and legs up to help him slide her pants and Togruta sash down her legs. Once they were down to her feet he yanked them off and tossed them down to the floor. He then looked down at the beautiful and sexy Togruta beneath him. Her blue eyes looked to him with lust, her lips alluringly swollen and breasts drawing him in from her breathing. She wore a pair of grey panties that had a large stain on the front.

"Did I do this?" he asked coyly, his finger tracing up her slit through the wet fabric. She moaned lightly from his touch.

''Yes," she said softly, struggling to suppress her moan.

He leaned down, kissing her again as his hands rubbed her from the outside. She moaned into the kiss, her legs wrapping around him as his fingers continued to press into her. Taran continued to rub her core from the outside for nearly a minute, her moaning whenever their lips weren't pressed together. Ahsoka was losing herself to his actions and he hadn't even take her underwear off!

Suddenly, a loud moan escaped her lips as his index and tall finger penetrated her. She was caught up in the pleasure that she hadn't felt him push her panties to the side to expose her core. His fingers delved into her up till the second knuckle as she hissed from the feeling as her walls stretched. Taran could feel how tight her walls clung to his fingers and how wet she was already.

He began to slowly finger her, his mouth finding her breasts. She began to moan loudly as he slowly moved inside her, his fingertips feeling her walls out. He slowly thrust them in and out as well to get her to relax to the feeling.

"Oh Force, Taran keep going," she moaned to him.

She clenched the sheet as he began to speed up and when he bit onto her nipple she nearly yelled. His fingers were now fully inside her, moving back and forth inside her. He soon found her G-spot, taking the time to tease it by just barely touching. This drove Ahsoka crazy as she began to roll her hips to his hand in an attempt to have his fingers go deeper. He took the time to rub her clit with his thumb as he finally began to rub her sweet spot. Ahsoka could feel she was getting close and he'd only been doing this for two minutes.

"T-Taran I'm gonna-ah-gonna," she struggled to say. She was so unbearably close.

Suddenly, Taran pulled his fingers out. She whined from feeling the absence of his fingers there as her climax that was right on the doorstep faded away. Taran proceeded to lick her essence from his fingers, savoring her taste.

"Wanted to wait for the main event," said Taran, kissing her quickly as he removed his underwear.

He then pulled hers off, she lifting her lips as he pulled them off of them and slid them oh so slowly down her legs, kissing the skin as he removed them. She sighed from the feeling as he threw them to the floor before kissing back up her legs to the apex of her hips. He spread out her legs as she settled to get comfortable in the small space of the mattress. He leaned down, licking up her wet slit to taste her juices. She moaned loudly as he tasted her for a few seconds before lifting his head back up.

"I really love how you taste," Taran said.

She blushed as he came up to kiss her again. She sighed into the kiss as she could just slightly taste her flavor. Taran got back on his knees, but Ahsoka followed him up, sitting on his lap with his member pressed against her core and her belly as she straddled him.

"This okay?" said Ahsoka.

"You never have to ask," said Taran, the pairs' lips diving into each other again. Taran moved his legs so that they were crossed beneath her to bring them into the lotus position. Ahsoka crossed her legs behind his back.

When they ended they shared a look as they knew what was going to happen next. She reached between them, her hand gripping his member lightly as she sat up enough for the tip to press against her lips. She took a few deep breaths to calm her nerves before she began to slide herself down on him. A gasp escaped her lips as she got past the tip. She then began to take him inch by inch, gasping and clenching his back. He held her back as well as she forced herself down on the rest of him. He let out loud gasp from the feeling as her walls squeezed him tightly, breathing harder from the amazing feeling of being insider her.

Ahsoka clenched onto his back as she let out a small yell when she took the rest of him inside. She trembled slightly as she felt her lower abdomen tighten from the feeling, a small pang of pain shooting through her body. She breathed hard to relax herself.

"Are you okay?" he asked, concerned for her as he felt how incredibly tight she was.

"I'm fine. It's just been a very long time and someone's grown since then," she said breathlessly.

The two shared a small laugh together as he let her grow accustomed to him. Ahsoka had to concentrate on relaxing herself. She took deep breaths to calm her senses. Taran held her by her lower back, lightly kissing her chest to soothe her. She sighed from the feeling as her body relaxed enough for her to move. She looked into his eyes.

"Are you ready?" said Ahsoka. Taran nodded the go ahead.

She placed her hands on his shoulders and began to slowly move on him. She lifted her hips, going up until his member was only halfway inside her before coming back down. She moaned from the feeling as she slowly rode him, using her hips to aid her. She and Taran kept eye contact as she let out a gasp every time she brought herself down. Taran moaned lightly as he felt her walls cling to him, her warmth and wetness sending a surge of pleasure with each hump.

Taran's hands moved down to grasp her ass, holding each cheek one in hand as he moved her in slightly faster. Ahsoka moaned from the feeling, beginning to move faster from his touch. Taran also began to move his hips into her the best he could from their seated position.

"Oh Force...ah...Taran," she moaned.

Their thrusts worked in a seesaw motion at first before they established their rhythm. They would pull back at the end of a thrust before they pushed right back in. Taran groaned as she started to speed up. Her walls squeezed around him, sometimes becoming as tight as a vice.

"Spirits Soka," he moaned, gritting his teeth to keep his focus.

He grasped her ass more to move her into him harder. Ahsoka moaned louder as she felt how deep he was with each stroke. She nestled her head into his neck, kissing his skin there as their passionate lovemaking escalated higher. She heard Taran breathing hard as he continued to pump into her. Her moans went up a higher pitch as she felt him readjust beneath her and felt him hit her sweet spot with each thrust. Her legs tightened around him as her toes curled from each stroke.

Her moans turned him on as he began to move harder and harder into her. She helped out, moving her hips and timing them with his pumps till she was bucking against him. The pair moaned in tandem as they let their senses wash in the fires of the pleasure they were experiencing. As she rode him she kissed him fiercely , their tongues wrestling with each other. The end was so close, but they wanted to prolong it and share the moment together.

Their moans never ceased once as they neared their ends. Taran latched onto her nipple again, sucking vigorously on it as she nearly screamed from the feeling.

"Taran, I'm close!" she moaned. Taran's answer was to speed up, giving her nipple one last tug.

They moved into each other harder and faster as they began to feel the beginning of their climax. They looked at each other one more time before they hugged each other tightly. Her walls rhythmic clenching paced faster and faster, signalling her impending release. He felt his member begin to twitch inside her. They held it in for a few precious seconds until finally their climax hit simultaneously.

"Aw!" they yelled at the same time.

His member thrust into her deeply just as he climaxed inside her. Her walls clenched tight as she came, her juices spilling out on his member. His seed shot into her rapidly as his member twitched with each spurt into her. Ahsoka felt the warmth of his seed filling her, sighing in contempt and from the mind-blowing pleasure, bucking on him a few more times from the sensations. He moaned as he felt his climax die down as they held each other, panting.

Ahsoka looked into his eyes again, kissing him deeply. He sighed into the kiss, relishing the feel of her lips.

"I love you," said Ahsoka, breathing hard. "I'll never stop loving you."

"I won't either. I love you too Ahsoka, always will," said Taran, his eyes shining back with the same love he had in his eyes to her.

Ahsoka buried her face in his neck, holding each other as they rested from their tryst. It was a relaxing feeling that was long overdue for the both of them as they still remained connected. His breath tickled her lekku as he rubbed her back slowly. They stayed like this for a few minutes.

"I promise," said Taran. Ahsoka pulled back to look into his face.

"Promise?" said Ahsoka.

"I promise we won't be separated again," said Taran, his hand finding her hand and intertwining their fingers. "I can't lose you again."

"You won't lose me. I'll be there at your side just like we always have," said Ahsoka. Taran smiled.

"So what do we do now?" said Taran.

"Well...I can think of a few things," she said seductively. Taran felt himself harden instantly, which she felt and let a small gasp escape her lips.

"Are you sure?" he said, not out of concern but wanted to know if she was serious.

"It's been two years without you. I'm done waiting," she said, kissing him fiercely. They pulled back after the need for air was apparent.

"Well I'd best not keep my Snips waiting," said Taran, grinning as he used her old nickname.

"Good you remembered something Gears," she said. She pecked his lips before she pushed him down onto the mattress.

"This time I'm doing the work," she said lustily.

She sat up on him, feeling his hardened length fill her. She then turned until she was facing away from him. From here he could see her back shining with her sweat as well as her butt. Her rear was toned yet shapely and it hypnotized him. She looked back, a smirk on her lips. She winked at him before she began to move her hips up and down on him.

She moaned as she rode him, her hips rolling as she brought herself down on him. Taran moaned and groaned as she set a fast pace. His hands clenched the sheets of the bed as his eyes closed. Ahsoka was moaning loud as she felt him hitting her back walls. The friction it caused was delicious as she bit her lip a few times to keep from moaning too loud. She was sure the room was soundproof, but you couldn't be too sure.

"Oh Force Taran, you feel-ah-so good," she moaned as her hands gripped his legs, bouncing her hips onto his lap.

Taran moaned with her, his hands finally moving as they reached up to her hips. He grasped them and began to thrust up into her. Ahsoka nearly yelled the first time as she felt each thrust hit her deep. Her walls clenched onto his member hard. Her breasts bounced as they found a rhythm, she coming down as he thrust up. Taran opened his eyes to see her moving on him vigorously, their skin smacking together as her ass rippled from when they touched.

"Ahsoka-AH-like that," he grunted.

Ahsoka smirked to herself, having him fall under her spell. Taran began to thrust harder up into her, causing her loud moans to rise to yells. Taran's hands clenched on her hips. His every thrust hit her deep, and she loved it.

"Mmm don't stop AH keep going," she said as she felt the tell-tale signs of her climax approaching.

She began to roll her hips to his thrusts. Her hand grasped one of her breasts and squeezed it while the other one one stayed on his leg for a time before she reached down to spread her lips. She looked down to see his member disappear in and out of her folds, the sight turning her on immensely and causing her to squeeze her walls on him even more.

Taran grit his teeth as he felt he was on the verge of his orgasm. She was coming down hard on him, her moans, gasps and yells causing him to lose his concentration from the erotic sounds. Finally he couldn't hold on any longer. He groaned loud as he shot his semen into her, thrusting into her with each pulse. Ahsoka felt the familiar feeling and moaned loudly as she continued riding him to intensify his orgasm. His seed began to spill out from her, sliding down his member as she kept up her pace.

Taran's right hand moved from her hip to her core, finding her clit and rubbing it hard and fast.

"Oh kriff Taran!" she yelled, her hips rolling erratically as she felt her orgasm crash over her.

She froze still for a split second, her mouth forming an O, before she cried out. Her cum spurted out, mixing with his and covered his genitals, dripping down to the mattress below. She came down hard on him in slow deliberate humps as she rode it out, moaning and gasping loudly before she finally calmed down. She panted hard as she lay back on him, her back pressed to his front.

"You are...so...amazing," said Taran through his pants.

Ahsoka laughed a little from the comment, intertwining her hands with his on either side of the bodies.

"You...really...think so?" said Ahsoka, her tone coy.

Taran nodded, his hands rubbing up and down her stomach and feeling the tops of her thighs before moving up to grasp her breasts. Ahsoka sighed from the feeling as they had a short rest. Taran's mouth found her lekku, kissing up and down a portion of it before it licking it slowly. She moaned from the pleasure, her hand going to the back of his head to hold him there. He did this for a few minutes before he gave one last kiss to it.

"Hope you're ready," he said in a seductive tone that had her nearly squirming from the thoughts that came to mind.

Taran turned her over so that they lay front-to-front and flipped them over. Instinctively, she spread her legs out for him. Taran sat up enough to take a firm hold of her waist and put her partly on her side. His left hand moved her leg up until it was over his shoulder as he straddled her other leg. He thrust his length into her, causing her to squeal from the feeling of him inside her again. Without a further word he set the pace.

He started at an average pace as she moaned beneath him as she felt him penetrate her deeply. His hips smacked into hers repeatedly. He pushed her leg forward until it was pressed to her body, her foot remaining on his shoulder as he leaned forward enough to truly drive himself in her as he pumped into her faster.

"Ah! Taran, ah!" yelled Ahsoka, her hands clenching the sheet as Taran slammed into her hard.

She yelled as she felt him hit impossibly deep to the point that it hurt, but was replaced by mind-blowing pleasure the likes of which had her head spinning. The feeling was indescribable. She couldn't even think straight as Taran thrust into her. Taran groaned above her, feeling how much tighter she was by the way her leg was held up.

"Faster!" yelled Ahsoka.

Taran obliged, thrusting even faster to the point that all that escaped her was her cries and yells. Her breasts moved hypnotically under him from his thrusts, the necklace bouncing along them. Seeing it brought him joy and felt his love for her increase. It drove him to go until he was pumping into her at a relentlessly fast pace.

Ahsoka began sayings words in her own language, some that escaped his mind while others he knew from what she had taught him. He felt her clenching on him in her vice-like grip, causing him to moan and groan above her that turned her on even more. Her core, already filled with a combination of his seed and her juices, produced more of her natural lubricant that soon had it dripping down her thigh from where they were joined.

"Taran I'm close!" she yelled to him.

He didn't stop, not even once as she came hard. He continued pumping into her hard as she came, drawing out and intensifying. Her cries rang around the room as her clear juices flowed out of her onto his member and down her thigh, hitting the mattress below. They kept flowing as Taran kept thrusting into her. She kept yelling from each thrust as he didn't stop. Soon her orgasm passed, but the high intensity she was feeling didn't end.

Taran's hips pistoned into her. His pants came out in tandem, but one would think he wasn't tired by the effort he was putting into the act. Ahsoka's yells egged him on, wanting to finish fast seeing as she had already came before him. His head went down to latch onto her right nipple, sucking on the bug fiercely. Ahsoka felt another climax about hit her as she felt her energy slip away from her.

"Spirits Soka," Taran groaned.

He grabbed her hips, letting her leg flop down to his waist as he thrust as hard as he could in her. Ahsoka yelled as she was about to cum as well. Her legs wrapped around the small of his back. He kissed her hard, muffling her cries as he felt his third release wash over him. He went as deep as he could when he came once again, his seed shooting out again into her core. She sighed hard into the kiss, her hands clenching on the skin of his back as she felt his release fill her again.

They lay perfectly still as their kiss lingered. His member pulsed inside of her repeatedly until it had shot the last of his essence into her. They released the kiss, panting hard.

"Wow," Ahsoka said breathlessly. Taran smiled down at her. He moved to her side as she turned to face him, their sweat-soaked bodies meshed together.

"That was...truly something," said Taran.

"You're telling me," she said as she fought to catch her breath, her head on his chest. He held her, his heart leaping for joy to have her in his embrace once again. He nuzzled the top of her head near her montrals, kissing the horns delicately.

"I meant what I said," he said. She looked up to him.

"I promise I'll never leave you again," said Taran. "I always keep my promises."

"I know," said Ahsoka, smiling softly. "It's one of the best things about you that I love about you."

"What else do you love about me?" he said in mock curiosity.

"Well...," she said, 'thinking' for a moment as if trying to figure a hard riddle, "your determination, your sense of loyalty, how much you care about others, the way you tinker with your inventions-"

"You loved that?" said Taran.

"How could I not? You did get us out of some tight spots because of what you created, like that seismic charge," she said. They both shared a laugh, remembering when he had made a homemade seismic charge for the Separatist fleet in the space of Elementia.

"I love it because watching you create makes you happy and it makes me happy as well," said Ahsoka.

"Are those all?" said Taran.

"There's numerous, but the those are the biggest ones, especially how you make me feel like the luckiest girl in the galaxy," said Ahsoka.

"You make me feel like the luckiest guy in the galaxy," said Taran. "Who would have known the girl I met that day would capture my heart and soul one day." Ahsoka smiled.

"And what I love about you? What's there not to love. I love how no matter how bad a situation is you won't back down, your fiery personality, your stubbornness-"

"I'm not stubborn Taran Cyneran," she said playfully, hitting his chest with her hand, causing the two of them to laugh.

"Either way, your traits made you into the beautiful and quite sexy woman you are today, and I'd have it no other way," said Taran. Ahsoka smiled broadly, planting another kiss on her lips.

"And I have a handsome man right beside me," she said, kissing him again. Suddenly, her expression changed.

"Taran, I don't want you to fall," she said.

"Fall?" said Taran.

"To the dark side. After the story you told me, I've noticed the aura you've been giving off. It's not bad, but it's not good either. Barriss and I had a talk about it when you were in the shower," she said.

"I'm not going to fall," said Taran, taking her hand. "Even after everything, I couldn't let that power consume me. I won't deny the power I have, but I won't embrace it."

He kissed her fully on her lips. "I have every reason not to fall right here in my arms."

She nuzzled into him, but she still allowed herself to worry. The thought of him turning was on her mind since their conversation, and she was going to do everything in her power to make sure it would never happen. The two sighed in contempt as they held their hands, gazing into their eyes. The minutes passed by as they rested before Taran started laughing, slightly startling her.

"What?" said Ahsoka.

"I just thought about what would have happened if the room wasn't soundproof," said Taran.

"Wait...are they?" said Ahsoka.

"I'm not sure actually, didn't think any of this was going to happen so I didn't ask," said Taran. Ahsoka felt horror grip her body.

"You mean the entire floor could have heard us?" she said.

"Possibly," said Taran.

"I'm so embarrassed," said Ahsoka, hiding her face in his shoulder.

"What for? Obviously two people are having a lot of fun enjoying themselves," said Taran. Ahsoka lightly hit his chest.

"Not funny," said Ahsoka.

"Aw don't be that way," said Taran, his hand capturing her face and kissing her forehead. "I'll be right back."

He got off the bed and slipped on his pants and his shirt before slipping out of the apartment. Ahsoka waited for him on the bed, taking a look at the mess they made. Their clothes were strewn all across the floor and the sheet of the bed was nearly off the mattress. She also slightly blushed as she saw their collected juices in spots on the mattress and on her thigh.

_"What a night it's been,"_ she thought. A few minutes later Taran came back.

"Spoke to the manager. All rooms are soundproofed when locked," said Taran, coming back over to the bed.

"Well that's good then," said Ahsoka.

"Except...we didn't lock ours," said Taran. He laughed when he saw the horrified look on her face.

"Kidding," said Taran. She gave him a death glare.

"Sorry, just had to do it once for old time's sake," said Taran.

"Well it's a relief for them then," said Ahsoka.

"Why's that?" said Taran.

"Because I'd hate for them to hear anything else we're going to do," she said seductively.

"You're seriously okay for more?" said Taran.

"Think of it as making up for lost time," said Ahsoka. "Now are you going to stand there or take your clothes off?" His clothes came off in no time.

"Good boy," she said, pulling him back down onto the mattress. "Now that I have you all to myself, I'm never letting go." She flipped them over, her being on top again.

"And I didn't like that little joke you did," said Ahsoka, biting down onto this neck.

"Where is this energy coming from and where can I get some?" said Taran playfully. She laughed as they kissed each other, she remembering those were the words said to him from their time on Ember Island.

"We have all night," said Ahsoka, kissing him deeply again. It truly was going to be a night to remember.

**Sorry this didn't update on Friday. Had a football game yesterday to attend and the night before was all school. Hope you enjoyed and leave your reviews**


	7. Startling Morning and Planning

Taran slowly opened his eyes to the new day. The rays of the sunlight from outside did not hit the small bed he and Ahsoka shared. They lay spooning on the mattress with his arm holding her close, the last position they did for the night/morning. He closed his eyes, a small smile playing on his lips as he remembered everything they did. They had coupled three more times that night before they were utterly spent, choosing to rest as they were. Taran didn't know where they got the energy to do all that, but he didn't care. He was with her now and that was all that mattered. Being with her was like obtaining the breath of fresh air one needed to survive each and every waking moment.

He sighed as he found he could not get back to sleeping so easily, the idea of getting into the Temple plaguing his mind. He willed himself to wake up, yawning from his still tired body. Ahsoka stirred next to him, shifting a little in her sleep. Her eyes fluttered open as she stretched and yawned. She took a few breaths to truly awaken from her slumber before she turned over to him. The pair smiled as their eyes met. Waking up with the one you loved was the best feeling in the world.

"Morning," said Taran.

"Good morning," she said softly, blinking a few times to get the last webs of sleep out of them. He kissed her a neck, a sigh escaping from her.

"Had a good sleep?" he asked.

"The best kind," she said, slightly blushing as she remembered all that had transpired. She yawned again as she stretched out in the confines of the bed. "What time is it?"

"It's...12!" said Taran, startled himself to see the time.

"12?! Kriff, we need to go get Barriss and go over the strategy," said Ahsoka, hastily trying to get out of bed. She swung her legs over the side before she winced and stopped.

"You okay?" said Taran.

"Yeah, just sore," said Ahsoka.

"Well someone insisted" said Taran, hugging her from behind.

"Shut up," Ahsoka said playfully, leaning back into him.

It felt so weird to the both of them. Here they were in the worst place for a former Jedi to be at and here they were having just done activities that any teenager would have done. Yet, they didn't care. No other feeling was needed more then them becoming one again.

"Guess we gotta go shower," said Taran. He picked her up, startling her as he carried her to the shower.

"My hero," she said sarcastically, causing the two of them to laugh.

(Warning. Lemon scene)

They entered the shower, Taran putting Ahsoka down on her feet as he turned the valve to get the water running. Ahsoka let the water rinse down her, feeling the warmth it and Taran gave off. The shower was a tight squeeze due to it designed for just one person, but she didn't mind it. She found the bar of provided soap, lathering the washcloth and beginning to scrub her arms with it.

"Here, allow me," said Taran.

He gently took the washcloth from her and started washing her skin starting at her shoulders. He made sure they were covered in suds before he ventured down. She sighed as he washed her chest, slowly washing her breasts. The manner he did it was light and soft, yet she loved it. He paid special attention to the area before he descended down, washing her belly and upper legs. He knelt down enough to get to her calves and shins, ticking her feet as he scrubbed under them.

"I feel like I'm getting the royal treatment," she said, giggling from the tickling sensation.

"Only for you," said Taran, smiling up at her.

He moved up from her feet, slowly rising up her leg to send tingles and goosebumps through her body. She gasped softly as she felt the washcloth on her core, rubbing back and forth. She breathed slowly to calm her nerves, her hands gripping the shower tiles. He did this for a minute before he moved away.

"All clean," said Taran.

"Now it's your turn," said Ahsoka, biting her lip as she took the washcloth and lathered up more soap into it.

She did the exact same thing he had done to her, starting at his shoulders before working it down. She paid close attention to his pecs and abs, gazing at the twin scars that decorated the front. She washed up and down the two lines, causing a sigh from him. She went up and down his arms as well before she came back to his abs and down his legs. She performed the same thing he had done for her, washing his feet. He tried to hold in his giggles as well.

"And here I thought earthbenders weren't ticklish on their feet," she said. She moved up slowly from his feet before she came up to his member and testicles, washing them slowly.

Taran let a moan slip from his lips as she washed him thoroughly, feeling him harden in her grasp. She smiled to herself as she began scrubbing and

"There, all clean," she said, planting a kiss to his chest as she stood back up.

She placed the washcloth back on the rack after rinsing off the soap suds. She looked up into his eyes again before their lips met. The kiss only served to egg on their hunger for each other. Her hands went to his arms as his went to the small of her back. The kissing intensified, his lips trailing up and down her lekku and her montrals, having her moan.

"Don't stop," she moaned.

"You sure you want to?" said Taran, knowing she was still sore.

She raised her leg to his hip. The look she gave told him "What do you think?" He smiled as he raised her other leg. She hopped up to wrap her legs around his waist, hooking them at the small of his back. She felt him press against her before he slid in. A loud gasp escaped her lips as she felt him penetrate her yet again. He pressed her against the wall, the still flowing water running down their bodies. He moved his hips forward, causing her to moan out as he filled her.

He thrust in to her repeatedly at a moderately fast pace. She moaned and cried out as she held on to him, the feeling of his member inside her bringing her immense pleasure. Taran grunted with each stroke as he drove into her. Her walls still clenched tight on him, her wet breasts moving in beat. Her moans and the water on them increasing his senses, turning him on even more. He began to thrust harder into her.

"Ah Taran!" she cried out, her legs wrapping tighter around him.

Her breath came out in pants as they continued, skin smacking ad the sound resonating into the room itself. His lips found her lekku, kissing up and down the length of it. She used her hips to press towards him. Her efforts could not keep up the pace, but it did bring them towards even newer heights. Taran groaned as he felt himself about to hit his climax already. He began to suck hard on her nipple. She cried out again, her hand holding him there as the other hand clenched on his back as if her life depended on it. She bucked her hips to him harder.

"Force Ahsoka, I'm not gonna last much longer," he moaned.

She moaned again as his hands grasped her ass and he held each cheek to truly pound into her.

"Let go Taran. Please," she whimpered, crying out as her climax was on the doorstep.

A few more thrusts into her and she came with a yell, holding him tightly with her arms and legs. Taran grunted as he pumped into her hard and fast, drawing out her orgasm. He finally came after ten more thrusts, spilling his seed into her and groaning out loud on her skin. They both shuddered as they felt the feeling wash over them. It seemed like an eternity had passed before they relaxed and held each other.

(End lemon)

"You truly are something else," he said softly to her.

"You bring that out of me," she said, kissing him gently.

"I'll always remember that. Right now, we'd better get out. This place only holds so much hot water," said Taran.

At that moment the water got cold, causing her to shriek from the feeling. Taran turned the valve off as they got out, she withdrawing her hold from him as she got the towel to dry off.

"Seven times, wow," said Taran.

"You seem shocked," said Ahsoka, smiling.

"Wasn't expecting all of it to come crashing down. I'm not complaining though," said Taran.

"Good, but let's keep that thought on hold for awhile. We need to get the holocron first," said Ahsoka.

"I was thinking the same thing," said Taran, hugging her from behind. She sighed, leaning back into him.

"I love you," she said, rubbing the back of her head on him and holding his arms. "I just never would have expected this to happen again."

"I thought the same, but we're together now. Come on, let's get dressed and go get Barriss," said Taran.

"I wonder what she's doing right now?" said Ahsoka.

* * *

Barriss took a deep breath as she finally willed herself to wake up. The rays of the sunlight was hitting her in her face. She stirred a bit as she rolled over to her side, coming into contact with the person on the bed.

"Morning Barriss," said Jaysh, his hand moving to stroke her hair.

"Morning," said Barriss, still tired to focus.

5.

4.

3.

2.

1.

Her eyes shot opened as she fully comprehended the situation. She looked to see Jaysh laying awake on the bed, naked next to her. What was even worse was that she was naked as well.

_"Oh no,"_ she thought in horror.

Without a further word she sprang out of bed, wrapping the covers around her form.

"Hey, what's wrong?" said Jaysh, sitting up on the bed with his lower half underneath the sheet.

"Jaysh, what did we do?!" said Barriss, her nerves on fire as she tried to fully comprehend everything.

"Wait, you don't remember?" said Jaysh.

"Wait...hold on...oh Force," said Barriss, her hand up to her forehead as it all came back to her now.

* * *

Ahsoka and Taran had left about an hour ago. Barriss was calmly reading a holostory from the projector in her hands. As she read, there was a knock on the door. She used her senses to see who it was. When she felt the familiar presence she rolled her eyes but stood up anyway. She casually walked to the door and opened it, revealing Jaysh.

"Hey! Gilla told me what room you girls were staying at and I thought I'd drop by," said Jaysh.

"That's great. You can leave now," Barriss said curtly.

"Leave? I just got here. Wait, where's Ahsoka and...Sir Bendy," said Jaysh.

"His name's Taran and they went off to spend their time together so it's just me, now can you go?" said Barriss.

"I'm sensing a lot of hostility towards me. Did I do something?" said Jaysh.

"I don't know, did you?" she said pointedly.

Jaysh shrugged. "Not that I can think of."

"Oh, so going off with that girl isn't bad?" she said pointedly.

"Whoa, hold on. First, she gave an offer and I accepted. It's called being polite. Second, why do you care?" said Jaysh.

At that Barriss froze. "W-what? Who s-said I cared? I d-didn't...well...I," she said quickly.

Jaysh would have laughed, but the sight of her fumbling for words to say was enough to see she was in a dilemma.

"Hey, hey," he said as he placed his hands on her shoulders, " Relax. You're not that pretty when you're frantic."

_"Did he just say I'm pretty?"_ she thought.

"Shut up," she said angrily.

"Anyway, yes we had a few drinks and yes it did lead to something else. Either way I'm not complaining," said Jaysh.

"Unbelievable," said Barriss, turning away from him and crossing her arms.

"But, what you need to do is get out," said Jaysh.

"Get out?" said Barriss.

"Yes. Have some fun. See people, enjoy life. Seriously, when was the last time you had fun?" said Jaysh.

Barriss thought about it. She couldn't even remember when to be completely honest. Never once had she had a chance to enjoy herself.

"I...I haven't," said Barriss.

"I'm not going to dictate what you should and shouldn't do. I'll give you a choice: meet me downstairs in ten minutes if you want to go out and live a little or stay here, it's up to you," said Jaysh.

He turned and left, closing the door softly behind him. He began to walk casually down the hallway towards the elevator. He clicked the button and waited for the elevator to reach the floor. As he waited he heard the sound of a door opening and closing and the sound of feet running towards him. Barriss turned the corner and stopped when she saw him.

"I take it that's a yes?" said Jaysh.

"I just didn't want to be bored," said Barriss.

"Keep telling yourself that," said Jaysh.

* * *

The nightclub they went to was lively and buzzing with activity. Loud electronic music was blaring from the loudspeaker as people danced to the beat. It was here that Jaysh took Barriss.

"Should I really be here right now?" said Barriss.

"You asked to come and now you're here. No sense in backing out," said Jaysh, dragging her in.

"I don't remember really asking," she muttered.

"Liven up," said Jaysh, taking her over to the bar.

He sat down on a stool, she sitting down on one next to him. The bartender, an Ithorian, was currently serving a few girls of various species. He saw them and asked in his language what they would like.

"Get me a Corellian whiskey on the rocks, and what will the lady have?" said Jaysh.

"Um, just a water," said Barriss.

Both Jaysh and the Ithorian gave her a disbelieving look. It caused her to reconsider, even if it was just for this one time.

"Alright fine, I'll get what he's having," said Barriss.

The Ithorian nodded and prepared the two glasses, sliding them over to them when the quantity was poured.

"You sure you can handle it? This is a strong brew," said Jaysh.

Barriss took it as a challenge. She took the glass and immediately began gulping it down, much to Jaysh's shock. She downed the whole glass in a matter of seconds, putting it down and coughing harshly a few times before she steadied herself.

"Still think I can't?" said Barriss, a triumphant look in her eyes.

"Not bad," Jaysh said.

* * *

Four glasses later and Barriss was starting to feel the effects of the alcohol. She had loosened up, being more open now than she was when she had entered. Jaysh would tell her adventures he had endured and their outcomes. If she found it humorous, she laughed. She also cringed if it was something painful as he had recalled when he wrestled a Tusken Raider for the honor of keeping his life. Barriss would also tell stories from her past, such as how she and Ahsoka had taken out a droid foundry on Geonosis and their two misadventures with Geonosian brain worms.

"So you got taken by them twice? That sucks," said Jaysh.

"I don't like to think about that too much," said Barriss, giggling to herself. "Ahsoka saved us the first time; Taran saved us the second."

"Must have been great to be a Jedi," said Jaysh.

"It had its great moments...and worst moments. Guess it's just life, no matter what your role in it is," said Barriss.

"Hey," said Jaysh, downing the last of his drink. "Let's dance."

"D-dance? No, I-I don't dance," said Barriss, quickly becoming embarrassed.

"Nonsense," said Jaysh, swiftly taking her hand and dragging her out to the floor.

The music was a techno synchronization of different rhythms and patterns of music that she would like to hear later on. Others around them dancing and Jaysh was moving along with them. Barriss was hesitant at first, embarrassed to be here in public. She softly swayed to the music, the alcohol in her system affecting her thinking to loosen her up and release her inhibitions. She found the beat and begin to sway her hips, followed by her legs, and then the rest of her body.

"There you go, just like that," said Jaysh, encouraging her.

She smiled and lost herself to the music. She and everyone around her were lost in its tantalizing world. The rhythm and notes drove her body and she embraced it wholeheartedly. She didn't notice that she soon bumped into Jaysh, who smiled and they danced together. Never before had she had this much fun in her life before. It was like being a long suppressed dream. They danced close to each other all throughout their time there, at one point the two connected close together.

"Best night ever," said Barriss.

"Glad I could help out beautiful," Jaysh said.

They did this for around thirty minutes until they were tired and went back to the bar area ordering a few more drinks. Jaysh's face was flushed by now and Barriss was there too as they swapped more stories before calling it a night. They managed to make it back to their hotel, laughing as they continued to converse, some of their words slurring or stuttering but it did nothing for them. They passed by Gilla, who looked astonished yet amused to see them like this. Yet she also seemed sad.

_"If only she knew,"_ she thought before she went back to her logbook.

"That was the most fun I've had in...well ever," said Barriss when they got to the room.

"See, not so embarrassing now is it?" said Jaysh.

"Not at all," said Barriss, sitting down on the bed. "Thanks for this Jaysh, it was the first time I've ever been able to do it."

"Anytime Barriss," said Jaysh.

"You know, besides Ahsoka you're the first person I can spill my feelings to," said Barriss.

"Well drinking does tend to have that effect," said Jaysh.

"Shut up, I'm being serious," said Barriss. "I always kept my feelings closed to myself for reasons."

"Reasons?" said Jaysh.

"I've done some pretty bad things in the past," said Barriss. "Things even you would cringe at."

"You're talking about when you and Ahsoka had that falling out?" said Jaysh.

Barriss nodded, her face saddening. "Remember when I told you I'd almost gotten Ahsoka killed? The truth was, I set her up to take the fall for something I had done."

"What could you have done?" said Jaysh.

Barriss took a deep breath and began to tell him everything. She started from when she had first set on her path to get her message through and every small detail in between. Jaysh listened to her every word attentively, his face changing depending on the event she described. The look he gave her when she detailed the bombing and betraying Ahsoka made her feel extremely self-conscious, but she continued anyway.

"And I have to live with the fact every waking morning that I killed a friend of mine who taught me how to wield a lightsaber, but I killed others and nearly got another one of my dear friends killed all because I couldn't have the courage to openly declare myself as the one who did all of it," said Barriss.

Her voice cracked as tears began to form in her eyes.

"I know you probably think I'm a monster for what I've done. I don't blame you," she said tearfully.

"Hey stop," said Jaysh, taking her by her upper arms. "You did some messed up things in the past. I'm sure we all did. Do you let it rule you?"

Barriss looked into his eyes, shaking her head slowly.

"Good. If Ahsoka hated you, she wouldn't stick around you. She obviously trusts you and it's time to stop holding onto the past and live a better life in the future," said Jaysh.

Barriss thought about his words. How could a smuggler be so wise she wondered.

"T-thank you Jaysh," she said, wiping her eyes. He took her chin in between his fingers.

"Relax, you're too pretty to be sad," he said softly.

He leaned down and kissed her. Barriss' eyes widened as she realized what was occurring. Jaysh, the smuggler, was kissing her. Her. She didn't know how to react. Her mind was telling her to pull away, but part of her loved it. It was her first kiss after all, she had no idea what to think of it. As the seconds dragged by she began to like it. Just as she was closing her eyes to lose herself to it, Jaysh pulled back.

"Sorry, I don't know what came over me. I've been wanting to do that for awhile," he said bashfully.

"Don't stop," she said softly, her eyes looking into his. His lips and hers crashed together before they fell onto the bed.

* * *

"Now I remember," Barriss said shamefully.

"It wasn't bad was it?" said Jaysh.

"Yes..well no...that's not the point. I don't do this sort of thing with just anyone," said Barriss, trying to bring herself together.

"Wait...was this your first time?" said Jaysh, still confused. Barriss collected herself and nodded.

"So that's why...oh man," said Jaysh, falling back down to the bed.

_"Could this get any worse?"_ Barriss thought.

Suddenly the door opened.

"Barriss, sorry we're l-Whoa!" said Ahsoka as she and Taran entered the room. The two realized that they had walked in on something they weren't meant to see. It didn't take a scientist to see that the two were naked underneath their sheets.

"Umm...we'll give you some time," said Ahsoka, she and Taran hastily exiting the door.

Ahsoka stared at the wall while Taran was shocked as well.

"I honestly did not see that coming," said Taran.

Ahsoka remained speechless.

"What's wrong?" Taran asked.

"I'm just in shock. Barriss doing that was something I wasn't expecting," said Ahsoka.

"You're right about that. Maybe she might have found someone she likes," said Taran.

"But Jaysh?" said Ahsoka.

"Even those with faults we can't help but like anyway," said Taran.

"Even me?" said Ahsoka.

"Oh yes. Your stubbornness," said Taran.

"I am not stubborn; I'm determined," Ahsoka countered.

Taran gave her a neutral look before he started laughing. Ahsoka crossed her arms and glared at him.

"What's so funny?" said Ahsoka.

Taran stopped long enough to answer. "You just proved my point."

Ahsoka rolled her eyes and huffed. Taran smiled and pulled her close.

"It's one of the things I love about you," said Taran. Ahsoka smiled, gazing at him.

"And I guess I can live with your recklessness," said Ahsoka.

"I'm not reckless," said Taran.

"Riiight," said Ahsoka, laughing to herself.

"Fine you got me there," said Taran. "Think we should see if there decent?"

"Let's give them another few minutes," said Ahsoka.

* * *

When they walked in finally, Barriss and Jaysh were dressed. Jaysh was rubbing the back of his head sheepishly while Barriss couldn't bear to bring her eyes up to face them, her cheeks flushed from embarrassment.

"So...how'd your night go?" said Jaysh.

Now it was Ahsoka and Taran's turn to blush. "It was nice," said Ahsoka.

"Let's go over the plan shall we," said Taran.

He sat on the edge of Barriss' bed. They all sat down around him as he fished out his data chips, a hologram projector and his hacking device. He hooked it up to the projector and inserted the chips in to each one. In a little over half a minute, a projection of the Jedi Temple was up.

"The plan is simple but will require many factors for it to go right, stealth being one of them. To start off, the video feed I've collected will be used to mask the cameras that are laced inside the Temple with older feed so we can travel inside. That's the easy part. The harder part is moving through there undetected and unseen. The Temple is crawling with probably stormtroopers, possible Dark Side Adepts, Imperial Senate Sentinels as they're called and a type of stormtrooper called Shadow Troopers. This along with the grand Inquisitor stationed there will be a huge problem."

"So what we'll need is another distraction. An alarm will trigger in the lower levels to cause most of the security staff to head down to find the disturbance. It should give us enough time to get in retrieve the holocron undetected. Now I'm sure that their security interface defenses will kick into gear sometime after the alarm is set, so we need to be fast. Thankfully I remember exactly where it is so it shouldn't be too much of a problem," said Taran.

"I'm guessing we're going to need to split up," said Barriss.

"I can be the diversion for the Emperor's forces at his palace. It'll be like my own little slice of revenge," said Jaysh.

"And I'll trigger the alarms in the lower level," said Barriss.

"Can you do it undetected?" said Taran. Barriss nodded.

"And we'll go retrieve the holocron," said Ahsoka, her hand holding his.

"We also have to make sure that we are absolutely not seen. There's no telling how the Empire will react to three ex-Jedi on the the planet who were believed to be dead," said Taran.

"And if we're seen?" said Barriss.

"Get off the planet as fast as possible."

* * *

Commander Fox was briefing the members of his staff on the security threats as Rex and a few other commanders of the 501st listened. The mood in the briefing room was somber with a edge of uncertainty.

"In short men, lock down everything and make sure even the men among you are questioned at every interval. Patrols around the general vicinity will be intensified and no civilians allowed to pass the checkpoints. Traffic will be diverted as well and air support to be put on standby. The men of the 501st will bolster our strength and respond effectively to any signs of a breach or trespass. Any questions?" said Fox.

None spoke.

"Good. Proceed to your stations," said Fox.

The men under his command immediately stood up from their chairs and began filing out of the room. The commanders of the 501st and Fox stayed in the room, waiting the arrival of their overall commanding officer. They waited on his arrival, he walking in a minute later. His dark visage and commanding presence dominated their respective wills. The room seemed to get colder, but they all blamed it on their fear of him. All but one of them.

"As you know, the Emperor's safety is of the utmost importance," said Darth Vader.

"Yes sir," said the commanding officers.

"The Emperor's acolytes will be available in case the assailants try to infiltrate. Your orders are to hold them until they or I arrive. Understood?" said Vader.

"Yes sir," they echoed.

"Commander Fox, replay the surveillance feed," said Vader.

Fox obeyed and soon a holoprojection of the footage caught from the night before popped up and began to play. It showed the chase scene from the time of the speeders to their disappearance. The Sith paid attention to every detail of the chase, the recording playing back every time. He was especially keen on their appearance.

_"Do I...know that mask?"_ he thought.

He focused harder on the female as if trying to pry the mask off of the projection through sheer will. He knew it was on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn't place a name to it. His vision transfixed back to the male as the air around him was manipulated and the landing. Immediately his mind went elsewhere. There was only one being he knew who could do that.

"All but Rex, leave me," said Vader.

They all nodded and left the two in the briefing room. Rex stepped forward towards Vader.

"Rex, does that seem familiar to you?" said Vader, pointing to the image.

"I thought the same thing too sir, but it's not possible," said Rex.

"I thought the same. Perhaps it was a manipulation of the Force that has not been encountered as of yet. Nevertheless, this is a grave threat. I especially need your men to be prepared in the following few days," said Vader.

"We will be sir. You can count on us," said Rex.

"Very good Commander Rex. See to your men," said Vader.

"Sir," said Rex, saluting him before he turned and left the room, helmet in his arm.

Vader watched him depart before he went back and stared at the image more, his respirator providing his breathing that would haunt all his enemies and allies alike.

* * *

Ahsoka was gazing out at the setting sun of the planet from the bedroom window. No matter when, she always enjoyed watching the sun set on any planet she was on. The beauty of the last rays of sunlight shimmering on the horizon had a calming effect on her. Watching the sunset and sunrise was like watching a life end and another one beginning.

She sighed in contempt as the sun finally set, bathing their side of the city planet in twilight. She smiled when she felt a pair of arms wrap around her from behind and his head pressed to the side of her montral.

"Enjoying the view?" asked Taran.

"It's always my favorite time during the day," said Ahsoka.

"Are you okay with tomorrow?" said Taran.

She nodded, her hand taking his in her own.

"I'll stay by you at all times," said Taran.

"What if everything goes wrong?" said Ahsoka.

The question had been on her mind since he had begun explaining their roles. There were too many risks to count and to just leave the planet would have been the easiest answer, but the risk of not trying to retrieve the holocron was even worse.

"That's come across in my mind as well," he said, sighing into her.

"I'm afraid," she confessed.

"We all are. Something bad happening to you is my worst fear," said Taran.

He took the hand she was holding and squeezed it softly.

"We'll be fine as long as we can stay together," he said softly. "We're going to get out of this."

"I trust you," she said, leaning back into him and closing her eyes.

_"I just want us all to be okay,"_ she thought.

**Okay so the next chapter might take more than a week to finish due to school. Still try to update on Fridays if I can. Remember to leave your reviews, these next few chapters are gonna be intense. **


	8. Back to the Temple

Rex waited impatiently at his post, his eyes on the security cameras assigned to his section. He had been on edge since he was roused from his sleep in the morning. It wasn't the idea of someone breaching the grounds; it was the failure. He had never failed an assignment or a mission since his creation, taking absolute care that it remained untarnished.

He darted through the different monitors every few seconds to check on all the goings on in the different checkpoints. As he studied them, one of his men walked up behind him.

"Everything alright Commander?" said the trooper, removing his helmet to reveal Kix.

Kix had retained most of his features. He still even sported the "A GOOD DROID IS A DEAD ONE" tattoo on his left temple. Kix had served faithfully under Rex and was his de-facto second-in-command.

"You know you should be at your post," said Rex.

"They'll be fine sir. You know Jesse can handle things down there," said Kix, standing beside him.

"I still wonder sometimes why you chose to leave the medical officer corps," said Rex.

"After Kashyyyk, I just couldn't do it anymore. Seeing Appo and Dogma die was the last straw for me," said Kix.

Rex sighed. They were hunting Jedi fugitives Roan Shryne and others and finally tracked the party down to the planet, which gave the Empire the perfect excuse to invade the planet. Dogma was killed in the firefight with the Wookiees and Appo was decapitated by Shryne himself. Their deaths hit the men of the 501st hard.

"We've been through a lot of missions together you and I. Be a shame if anything happened to either of us," said Rex.

"That won't happen sir. We're gonna retire with full honors and live out the rest of our days on some nice planet with good weather, maybe even a family," said Kix.

"I don't see that happening in my life Kix. I'm a soldier," said Rex.

Both clones were now biologically at the age of 30. They still had more years to live, but the constant warfare had taken its toll on them physically and mentally. Rex now sported a few wrinkles on his forehead and at the corners of his eyes. He seemed ten years older than he really was.

"Don't be like that sir. You still have time, just wait," said Kix, walking out of the room back to his original posting.

Rex rolled his eyes and continued gazing at the screen. He had been watching the screen for an hour now, finding nothing out of the ordinary going on. The men were dutifully at their stations and posts. Any suspicious activity was investigated before they returned. For once everything seemed to be going well.

Rex turned away from the screen to blink a few times before turning back. Still nothing out of the ordinary. He sighed.

"I hate security details," he said, echoing his thoughts.

He went to sit on a chair and rest for a moment. His eyes soon snapped back to the camera screens, zipping through each of his designated posts and still finding nothing.

"Maybe I am losing it," he thought, thinking of Kix's words.

He scrolled to the original camera posting. His eyebrow arched as two of the men went to investigate suspicious activity. It wasn't the activity that had him questioning what was going on. It was the fact that this had happened three times in over fifteen minutes. He decided to comm in on one of the men.

"Nail, what's the current situation?" said Rex.

"Situation sir?" said Nail.

"Yes. I keep seeing a disturbance on the surveillance," said Rex.

"Commander, there is no disturbance," said Nail.

"What are you talking about? I see one of your confronting a suspicious onlooker," said Rex.

"Um sir, that happened almost thirty minutes ago. The men are still at their posts," said Nail.

"What?!" said Rex.

He looked back at the camera to see the two men walking back to their post.

"Then what the hell am I seeing? Two of your men are moving," said Rex.

"Sir is everything alright? This isn't making any sense," said Nail.

Rex paused and looked at the video screen again as the surveillance depicted the men back at their posts. Nail would have been talking to him by now, but right now he was busily ordering some of them about. Something was definitely wrong.

"Hold on Nail," said Rex.

The stormtrooper commander called in to the Palace security network.

"Director, what is the meaning of this?" said Rex.

"Commander Rex, what is the problem?" said the security director.

"There seems to be a problem with the security feed. I'm seeing things that have already happened," said Rex.

"That's impossible. The network would have detected a foreign presence by now," said the director.

"Check it again," Rex ordered.

"Commander Rex, that tone is not necessary. The network is f-"

"Check it again! Something is not right with this situation and my instincts have never been wrong before. Even if I might be wrong, what do you think Lord Vader will do to you if you sat back and did nothing?" said Rex.

He knew firsthand the price for failure under Vader's command. Apparently his veiled threat paid off.

"Alright Commander, I'll check again," said the director.

The transmission ended and Rex sat back for a painstaking minute, still gazing at the screen. He flipped through the other screens to see actions take place that had already happened before. Suddenly the director's voice commed back in.

"Commander, the network has been hacked again!" said the director. Rex froze. He was right.

"Details on the breach?" said Rex, scrambling out of the room.

"The surveillance feed was hacked. Apparently whoever hacked it did a continuous loop of previous feed. In short, we were running blind the entire time," said the director.

Rex stopped mid-step, an ominous cold chill running up his spine. He had no idea how long it had been like this. If what the director had said was true, then the infiltrator could very well be inside the palace complex. He had no time to lose.

"All men, red alert! Squads lock down the hallways and alert the guards protecting the Emperor. No one gets through!" Rex yelled to his comlink.

His comlink soon came buzzing with recognition as alarms were triggered. Around him, high volume alarms blared. As he ran to rally a squad of his men down the hall, other stormtroopers rushed past to get to their designated posts.

"You men, patrol the corridor and question everyone," he ordered as he reached the squad.

"Yes sir," said the squad.

Rex continued on to link up with Kix and the rest of the companies under his command. The palace was a huge place so each squad was commanded by a squad leader and entrusted to secure and defend their designated areas. The entire 501st was in the palace. No one could just sneak in and do as he/she pleased so as long as they, Vader's Fist, guarded the Emperor.

As Rex ran another subordinate commed in.

"Sir, I've taken a head count and all units have scanned the entrances, passageways and the corridors. Everything seems to be fine," he said.

"Then check them again! I do not under any circumstance want any infiltrators getting in. Understood?" said Rex.

"Yes sir."

* * *

Little did the men of the 501st know, the Imperial Palace was not the intended target. Elsewhere at the Jedi Temple in its underbelly that few ventured into, an iron grate suddenly crumpled into itself and fell down into the sewer line. Three pairs of hands grabbed the sides, one pulling up onto the floor above and helping the other two up. They dusted themselves off and looked around. Barriss was in her black attire and a cloak, Taran in his attire with the helmet hanging from his back and his goggles propped on his head, and Ahsoka in her leather attire.

"It seems like it's been ages," said Barriss as she gazed around the underground passageway, one of four that branched out from the center located directly beneath the ziggurat.

The three of them began to run down the passageway's twisting turns and dark corners to get to the center of the Temple ziggurat. It took them all of four minutes to locate the center. Once at the center where the four passageways branched out, Taran felt around the wall for the hidden doorway, his fingers finally detecting the difference in the elemental makeup of the door. Carefully, he found the handle and opened it slowly. The door creaked open and the three of them walked into the passageway and stairway that would lead them up to the Temple.

They walked calmly up the twisting staircase, ducking down to avoid hitting the ceiling frame. After what felt like hundreds of steps, they reached the top where the the doorway leading to the underground below was located.

"I don't sense anyone on the other side. We're good," said Ahsoka.

Taran nodded and silently opened the door. They were welcomed into the sight of a large room that was once the Room of a Thousand Fountains. The large chamber was an empty shadow of its former self. It was here that they trained in numerous exercises in the peace and natural tranquility. It had once contained flowing waterfalls, numerous plant life from hundreds of worlds and artistic stone walkways and meditation benches. Now what stood there was rubble from fighting and dried up beds of dirt and earth. The pottery that once held the plants was in pieces all around the ground. The plants themselves were long dead leaving their wispy, thin husks behind as markers of what they had once been

They looked somberly at the room where they had shared so many memories. Taran sighed as he bent down to gingerly touch the stalk of a plant, the husk falling off and landing on the ground. It was truly a sad sight to see a once proud and beautiful chamber now reduced to a state of decay. They walked through the dead gardens, gazing through forlorn eyes. It seemed like hours had went by by the time they arrived at one of the side entrances, choosing not to use the main entrance for fear of the doorway being blocked or guarded,

"Alright, we'll split up here. You know what to do Barriss?" said Taran.

"Got it," said Barriss.

"Remember, cut the feed on the signal," said Taran.

Barriss nodded as she went to the doorway on the far left while Taran and Ahsoka ventured over the opposite doorway. They all shared one last look before they pried open the already deactivated doors and carefully stepped outside, sticking close to the walls and the shadows.

Barriss moved swiftly through her part of the Temple, making sure she wasn't spotted by the security cameras as she ventured to one of the main computer terminals on the base floor. She used her knowledge of the Temple layout to navigate through the ruins as best she could. As she walked, she began to notice the damage and battle scars around the hallways. Blaster marks scorched the walls everywhere she looked. Deep black lines displayed the scars along the floor and the walls from lightsabers that had once been swung by their owners to defend themselves.

_"I can only imagine what transpired here,"_ she thought.

She had heard the story of that deadly night from Ahsoka the few times she was willing to tell. How she was able to survive it was beyond her. The night of Order 66, she had seen a vision of her Master, Luminara Unduli, perish from Commander Faie and several other accompanying clone troopers as she attempted to heal and evacuate the wounded from the aftermath of the Battle of Kashyyyk. The sight had alone had her sobbing in her cell for long hours as she lamented the loss of her mentor.

She shook her head, channeling out the melancholy thoughts from her mind. She had job to do and looking back on the past wasn't going to get her anywhere. As she rounded a corner, she stopped in her tracks to see a two man squad up ahead. Luckily they were facing away from her. She took the time to investigate their appearance.

They wore grey and white robes with armor on their chests and arms. Their helmets resembled that of the Senate Guard. Shouldered and held in their hands were Force pikes. Barriss knew that being hit with one at its maximum setting was the same as a lightsaber cutting through it. Though they weren't Force-sensitive, these men were trained for any kind of combat. These were the Imperial Senate Sentinels, deployed at the Temple to take out any infiltrators, Force-sensitive or not.

She waited for them to pass along the hallway before she stealthily moved behind them to get to the other hallway. Down this hall was the terminal she needed to access.

Meanwhile, Ahsoka and Taran were stealthily moving down the hall on the adjacent walls, sticking clear to the shadows. They were coming up near the main hall, the site of the fiercest and most gruesome of the fighting. Taran stopped at the end of the hall to gaze out and check if the coast was clear. A squad of stormtroopers was casually patrolling at the end of the hall, as well as a group of four Sentinels. They paused and waited for the right moment to sprint by them unnoticed. Taran pushed a green button on his comlink, the signal for Barriss to cut the feed.

He waited as the button beeped green for a minute before it turned yellow. He nodded at Ahsoka, who returned it. They looked back at the two squads before Ahsoka set off first, using the Force to aid her run as Taran ran simultaneously with her. They moved so swiftly that when the troopers turned to see where the noise came from, they saw nothing.

"Please tell me I imagined that," said a stormtrooper.

"You know what they say. This place is haunted," said one of the other soldiers.

"Don't be ridiculous," said another squad mate.

"Think about it. The Jedi had been here for thousands of years learning to channel their so-called Force. Doesn't that disturb any of you?" he said.

None of them answered. They didn't want to believe it but his words held some meaning. It wasn't the first time they had heard strange occurrences in the Temple.

Taran and Ahsoka stopped after safely making it to another hall where they sensed no one was around.

"Think they saw us?" said Taran.

"I'm sure they didn't. We would have known if they were," said Ahsoka.

The two paused for a moment before they began making their way up to the top. As they walked, Ahsoka looked around at the battle-scarred halls, rooms and walkways. She remembered when they were in all their splendor and glory. Here was a room where she had underwent battle training at. On one walkway they could the main hall below. She paused to stare down at it, remembering the sight of the battle that took place down there. They had lost Bruck down there after the last charge of the Masters and Knights. Taran turned back to see Ahsoka gazing sadly down there. He understood what she was thinking of.

"Ahsoka," he called out softly.

She looked up at him, wiping at the corner of her eye.

"It's alright. Don't worry about me," said Ahsoka.

"I can't help but to worry about you," said Taran, coming closer. Ahsoka looked up at him before she sighed and hugged herself to him.

"It feels like coming back into a nightmare. It's like I can still hear their screams, their yells inside my head," said Ahsoka.

Taran understood what she meant. He had to stay focused on finding the holocron in order to not feel the emotions he felt by being back in his old home. It took all he had to not break down right then and there.

"The sooner we find it, the sooner we can leave," said Taran.

Ahsoka nodded, taking a deep breath to ease her senses. The two then began to move silently on the rest of the walkway, determined to find the holocron and keep it out of enemy hands. For now, they just had to

* * *

A stormtrooper was heading to the Inquisitor's office located in what was once Jedi Master Yoda's quarters. He was coming in to give his report on the current conditions of the Temple and other miscellaneous information. The Sentinel swallowed his fear as he approached the office. The Grand Inquisitor was hands down the most feared being in the Temple, second to Lord Vader. Working under him the squads knew that if there was an intruder that escaped, they would pay for it with their lives. This Inquisitor was unlike Malorum.

The stormtrooper walked into the door, it sliding back to reveal Inquisitor Tytos. Tytos was a tall man standing at 6'3". His skin was steel grey and his forehead covered in Sith arcane runes. He sported short, spiky white hair and his attire was in traditional Sith attire with black robes and pants. His boots were lined with durasteel. Currently, his eyes were closed in deep meditation.

"This had better be important soldier," he said in a voice that would freeze water.

"Just here to deliver the report Inquisitor Tytos," said the stormtrooper, doing his best to keep his composure.

Tytos opened his eyes, his red irises honing into the trooper.

"And the current status?" said Tytos, his voice hiding a dangerous edge.

"Um nothing too strange sir, but some of the men earlier thought that may might have heard footsteps," said the trooper.

"Footsteps?" said Tytos, his eyebrow arching.

"Yes sir, but they must have been hearing things. The Temple is strange," said the trooper.

"Stand outside my door and do not move until I come out. I am returning back to my meditation to find out more about these...footsteps," said Tytos.

"But sir, is it really necessary?" said the trooper.

"It might be and it might not be. Either way, precautions must be taken. You may go do as I have told," said Tytos. The trooper nodded and made for the door.

"And trooper, if you value your life you will stay there and not interrupt me again unless it is of the utmost importance," said Tytos.

* * *

"Is everything locked down Jesse?" said Rex.

"Yes sir. We checked everywhere and linked up with the Coruscant Guards under Fox. Nothing has gotten in," said Jesse.

"Are you sure?" said Rex.

"The tunnels were checked and probe droids are in all other areas only an expert would have gotten in. Not one of them was damaged," said Jesse.

"Commander, maybe this was a false alarm," said Kix.

"No! They targeted this building for a reason. Why else would they target our surveillance if not to slip through?" said Rex.

"I don't know sir," said Kix.

"Commander, Lord Vader requests a word from you in the Emperor's throne room," said another trooper from his command.

"Just what I need," said Rex, beginning to walk down the hall.

The last half an hour had been the most stressful for him and meeting with Lord Vader now sent it skyrocketing to astronomical levels. There was no telling what the Sith Lord would want from him. The walk toward the central tower was long due to his previous location. Walking down the passageway and then reaching the center where he would have to take an elevator to the throne room. During the elevator ride, he tried his best to calm himself down. As he got closer to the throne room, he could literally feel the presence of the Emperor and Vader. He hoped they were not displeased.

The elevator came to a halt and the doors opened. Looking ahead over thirty meters away sat the Emperor in his throne, Lord Vader by his side. Flanking them were two Royal Guards, their force pikes shouldered.

"Step forward Commander Rex," said Emperor Palpatine.

Rex began walking over hastily, coming to kneel down at the foot of the Emperor's throne.

"What is the present situation?" said Palpatine.

"My Lord, we detected a surveillance hack. The cameras were given feed from a previous time today and set to replay over and over again. Finding this out, I had all exits sealed and my own men questioned. Commander Fox dispatched probe droids and men in the underground tunnels, sewers and any other openings. It turns out their were no signs of intrusion, but I'm not convinced at all," said Rex.

"And why is that?" said the Emperor.

"Because it makes no sense to hack into the surveillance footage of the Palace complex if not to sneak in," said Rex. "Something's not right here."

"Once again, you prove to be decisive and fully competent to your duties Commander Rex," said Palpatine. "It concur with your thoughts Commander. What purpose would hacking into the security systems of the Palace serve?"

"Perhaps...as a diversion?" said Rex.

"The same thought has crossed my mind," said Palpatine.

"It is a possible notion that that is true. If Jedi were found on the planet, we would think that they would try for the Emperor's life. Yet, if the former idea is not executed, where else would they go?" said Vader, pondering himself.

"Lord Vader. Commander Rex. Perhaps a strike team should be sent to the Temple precinct," said Palpatine.

"The Temple?" said Vader.

"Search your feelings Lord Vader. It is possible that that is where the infiltrators might be. Prepare men from the 501st and the Coruscant Guards to the Temple, as well as a few of our acolytes. I'm sure they're dying to see real combat," said Palpatine.

Both Rex and Vader bowed and walked towards the elevator.

"How many men should I bring sir?" said Rex.

"Around 100 will suffice. Tell Commander Fox to send around 50 men. I shall summon the acolytes and we will depart in no less than twenty minutes," said Vader.

"Yes sir," said Rex.

* * *

Barriss stuck to the shadows of one of the elaborate hallways near the main hall. Her assignment was finished and now she waited patiently for the all-clear signal from Ahsoka and Taran. An occasional squad came by every now and again, but they never discovered her as she took shelter behind one of the damaged pillars. For now, she waited patiently and her mind wandered to other things, particularly to Jaysh.

Her feelings about him were confusing. Yes he was charming and he had a roguish persona to him, but she felt that what they had done a couple of days ago was rushed and very uncharacteristic of herself.

_"Perhaps...I should talk to him about this,"_ she thought to herself.

She had no idea why the mere thought of that scared her. She was never really good at explaining her feelings. She sighed quietly to herself. This was all confusing.

"Well, well, well. Look what we have here," said an icy voice to her side. She turned to see a tall man with spiky, white hair and red eyes looking down on her. She immediately stood up.

"Who are you?" said Barriss.

"Inquisitor Tytos," said Tytos, his hand reaching for the hilt of his lightsaber. "And you are trespassing Jedi."

From around them came Sentinels and a squad of stormtroopers, their weapons trained on her.

"I suggest you surrender. It's only going to get worse if you resist," said Tytos.

Barriss stood defiant and drew her lightsaber.

"So be it," said Tytos, the red blade emitting from the hilt.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ahsoka and Taran were nearing the top level of the Temple. They could finally run now since most patrols were in the lower levels. They were nearing the spot where Tia had perished at the hands of Vader. They slowed down as they neared it before coming to a stop. A small dark mark, old blood, was all that signified what had occurred here. Ahsoka knelt at the spot, her fingers ghosting over it.

"I'm sorry Tia. You were one of the best friends I could have. I hope you and Bruck are happy being back together," she said softly. Taran stared at the spot, remembering one of his most painful memories.

_Two clones came up, dragging someone along with them. Taran gasped as he saw it was Tia. She was alive! He saw her wound and how she was struggling to breathe, her eyes focused on him._

_"I also have a bargaining chip. Give me the holocron and I'll let her go," said Anakin._

_"Taran, don't do it!" Tia pleaded. "My life isn't worth it falling into their hands." Taran was lost. His eyes seemed to be going into another dimension. Could he let her die? Everything around his faded from view until it was all black as if he were in a void. What could he do? His thoughts went to Bruck, lamenting to himself how would even think of letting her die. The world came back into view._

_"What will it be?" said Anakin. Taran's eye flicked back and forth to Tia and the holocron in his hand. He couldn't do this._

_"Alright, you can have it," said Taran._

_"Taran, no!" said Tia, struggling against the grip of her captors. "Don't do this Taran!"_

_"Too many have died today Tia," said Taran. He levitated the holocron above his hand and sent it slowly towards Anakin. It hovered in their before it landed softly in Anakin's palm._

_"Thank you," said Anakin._

_"Now let her go like you promised," said Taran. Anakin nodded. The clone troopers released her as she got up shakily to her feet. She then began to walk towards Taran. She passed by Anakin, who did not look at her. Taran reached out his hand for her to take it. She then began to reach hers out as well as she steadily walked forward._

_"Taran-"_

_PZZT._

_A blue bar of energy erupted through her chest as her mouth opened, but no word or noise coming out._

_"No!" yelled Taran. Anakin drew the blade out and Tia toppled forward. Taran caught her._

_"Tia," he said, trying hard to desperately figure out how to heal her. But he knew that this wound none could heal. Tia looked up at him as her breathing lessened dramatically._

_"I'll...see...Bruck...again...don't be sad...keep...fighting...I know...you can...w-" she tried to say before she closed her eyes. Her arms fell limp to her sides and her head rested onto his chest as she died. Taran felt the immense amount of sadness hit him like a tidal wave._

He lowered his head, silently grieving to himself. He felt Ahsoka take his hand. The small gesture reassured him as he walked ahead, bringing her along with him to the spot where he had hidden the holocron up ahead. He his hand felt around the smoothness of the corner. He slowly bent a roughly four inch square cut of rock away, levitating it slowly to the ground. Inside the holocron glowed faintly, untouched after all this time. His fingers closed around it as he took it out to gaze at it.

"Ready?" said Ahsoka.

"Yes. Let's contact Barriss," said Taran.

"Barriss?" said Ahsoka on her comlink.

Suddenly, the sounds of a lightsaber whirring and the unmistakable sound of blaster fire were emitting from the audio on her comlink. Her breath hitched in her neck.

"Oh no," she said.

Without a further word the two of them raced down the hallway. Taran placed the holocron in a pocket in his jacket as they ran. Though they couldn't see it, they could feel the danger Barriss was in. As they turned a corner, a squad of stormtroopers blocked their path.

"Stop, halt right there!" their squad leader said as they trained their blasters on him.

Taran and Ahsoka drew their lightsabers and charged at them.

* * *

Rex and 29 other men were packed into the confines of the LAAT/i as it raced towards the Temple. The flotilla of gunships, 5 in all and a Lambda-class shuttle, flew in a V-formation over the city. The doors remained shut as he briefed the men.

"Remember men. Stay alert and check everything and everything. Understood?" said Rex.

"Yes sir," said the men.

The LAAT's made for the the platform at the beginning of the staircase that led to the main entrance. Once they touched down, the doors opened and the men moved rapidly out of the gunships. The shuttle landed nearby, Darth Vader walking out along with four others. These were the Senior Dark Side Adepts. They composed of three males and a female.

The first male to step out had messy blonde hair and dark blue eyes. He had a smug face in his all-black attire that resembled more like a smuggler's outfit, standing at 5'10". He had an earring in his right ear and a tattoo of a skull right below his left eye. His appearance was lanky yet formidable. He wore a lightsaber on his hip. His name was Thalo Catrel.

The second male stood at 5'11" and was nearly all muscle. He had long, crimson red hair that stood out from all the others and skin that was coal-black. Whether it was his actual skin or one giant tattoo was not known. His skin seemed to be stretched tight around his skull, defining his cheekbones. His teeth were filed to make them sharper as he peered out with soulless yellow eyes. His black pants and black military issue boots did not stand out but his torso was covered in a black armor that resembled the armor of the Emperor's Shadow Guard. He possessed two lightsabers on either side of his hips. His name was Lothor Varik.

The woman stood at 5'8" with brown hair that she let cascade down to her upper back. She had hazel eyes, a and a fair complexion. Her skin-tight pants were held up by a dark-brown belt and her black action boots. She wore a skin-tight black shirt with the Imperial insignia that displayed her curves, a dark-grey and black trimmed vest above it. A lightsaber was belted at her hip as well. Her name was Yvan Rollan.

The last acolyte was a male with a pale skin complexion that stood at 6'1". He had a long face that was completely bald of all hair. Piercing yellow eyes and thin lips, as well as three long scars like a slash from some kind of creature went down the middle of his face. He wore traditional Sith robes and a a double-bladed lightsaber strapped to his back. His name was simply Dagor.

Darth Vader stepped out behind them as they fanned out from him. He looked towards the Temple, the site of his full transformation to a Sith Lord. Here, he mercilessly slaughtered scores of Jedi he had grew up and trained with and fought beside. Men, women, children, it all didn't matter to him in the end.

Rex and Fox's men got into their lines and marched towards the Temple. Vader and the adepts would be waiting in reserve if the situation, if there was any, got out of hand. Rex stood near the front of the 501st men assembled when a call came in on his comlink.

"Hello, is there anyone there?" said the voice of a trooper.

"Commander Rex of the 501st, over," said Rex.

"Commander! We're requesting backup inside the Temple," said the trooper.

"Backup?" said Rex, stopping.

"Yes. Grand Inquisitor Tytos is engaging a Jedi near the main hall and there's two more heading down from the upper levels," said the trooper.

"What? Get me a visual!" said Rex.

"Yes s-" The sound of a lightsaber cutting through something came out of the audio recording before the line went down.

"Trooper, respond! Trooper!" said Rex. No response.

"Men, come with me! Set up positions in the main hall and spread out!" said Rex.

"Yes sir," they chorused back. They moved swiftly towards the entrance in platoon formations. The Coruscant Guards moved along with them as backup. Once they came into the hall they fanned out. They could hear the combat occurring ahead before it came into their visuals. Grand Inquisitor Tytos was currently fighting a woman with a yellow lightsaber and all-black attire. On the ground around them was a squad of dead and wounded stormtroopers and three Sentinels. Two of them were still in the fight, but were keeping their distance so as not to get caught in the duel.

"I need three platoons to circle around them," said Rex, him and his men starting to fan out. "The rest of you, move to the upper levels to find the other two."

"Guards, stay in reserve and wait for further instructions. Send a platoon to assist in tracking," said Fox. His men moved out as to his instructions.

Rex moved closer to the fight, his blaster trained on his target and ready to fire when the opportunity presented itself. He looked down through the scope to get a better picture of the Jedi. Tytos struck at her shoulder, which she blocked as he circled around her. She turned her head to focus on him, giving Rex the facial recognition he needed. His eyes, had they been visible if his helmet were removed, were widened in pure shock.

"No kriffing way," he said.

Barriss Offee, long believed dead, was fighting only twenty feet away from him. His blaster lowered slightly as he fought to make sense of what was all going on.

Barriss pressed Tytos back as he fought with a face of calm and collection. His eyes seemed to calculate what she was going to do next. Their lightsabers clashed continuously with no show of stopping.

"Lord Vader, do you copy?" said Rex in his comlink.

"Yes Commander. What is it?" said Vader.

"We found a Jedi infiltrator currently fighting Inquisitor Tytos," said Rex.

"I'm sure the Inquisitor can handle the current situation," said Vader.

"Sir, you don't understand. It's...Offee," said Rex.

A long pause of silence came from the other end.

"What? That is not possible," said Vader.

"She's fighting him right now sir. Believe me," said Rex.

"I am coming in. Do your best to make sure she does not escape," said Vader.

"Yes sir," said Rex.

Suddenly, a crash from the upper levels alerted him. From above, the body of a Sentinel fell to the ground at his feet. The body and armor clattered. Rex gazed up to see two figures jump from the walkway. A green lightsaber was in each of their hands. When their feet hit the ground, an enormous wave of air swept out in all directions. Rex was caught in its radius and fell to the ground. Barriss had jumped into the air to escape the air current, while Inquisitor Tytos was not so fortunate. His body hit a pillar behind him before he slumped to the ground dazed.

Rex shook his head as he sat up to get a visual of where that had occurred. What he saw made his eyes widen and time seem to stop.

Taran Cyneran and Ahsoka Tano were standing before him, alive and well.

**Next chapter will be out either next week or the week after. Gosh don't you just love cliffhangers :)**


	9. Temple Escapade

The sight of the two of them, alive after all this time, rendered Rex completely speechless. He had never found out what had happened to Ahsoka, only that she was listed as dead. He had personally believed that Taran was dead too. His blaster firing into his abdomen had haunted his dreams for the longest time. He also remembered seeing his body flung over the side of the Temple courtesy of A-Lord Vader. No one could have survived that fall. He had been too wounded to do anything to stop it.

His men began firing once Tytos was clear from their line of sight. The three of them began to block the incoming blaster fire.

"Barriss! Come on we have to go," said Taran through the din of the blaster fire. Barriss nodded and began to making her way steadily towards them.

Taran erected a stone wall in front of them to provide cover for them. They paused for a moment to catch their breath.

"Any ideas?" said Barriss.

"Not any come to mind," said Taran, using the Force to send a thrown thermal detonator back to its sender.

"I'm signaling Jaysh," said Ahsoka, going to her comlink.

"Tell him to get us at the eastern entrance," said Taran.

Suddenly, Taran froze. He felt an immense, dark presence heading their way. He focused with the Force on the darkness' signature to discover more. What he discovered made his heart skip a beat and his eyes widen in disparaging shock and fear.

"We have to leave now!" said Taran.

Ahsoka and Barriss were startled at his sudden outburst before they felt the same feeling as well. They knew now they had very little time left.

Taran reacted quickly. He stood up enough to deflect some blaster fire coming from the stormtroopers, with more gathering from the front.

"You ready?" said Taran. The girls nodded.

Taking a deep breath he bent their wall out in all directions. Stormtroopers who were caught in the trajectories were knocked out, with their comrades diving or rolling away to avoid the stone slabs. Seizing the opportunity to escape, they split up to reduce the targets the remaining stormtroopers could use and to maximize their chances of escape.

Taran's lightsaber slashed through two stormtroopers at once. They fell to the floor dead as the heat from the slash on their torsos died down to leave an ugly black scorch mark. Ahsoka deflected a shot back at a stormtrooper, who lay sprawled on the floor with a black hole smoking from his head. Any stormtroopers in front of them all gave ground not wanting to endure the wrath of former Jedi with combat experience from the Clone Wars.

"Try to surround them," said a squad leader. The men under him fanned out to try and contain them.

Meanwhile, Rex was still staring at them as he sat against a pillar behind them. He was truly at a loss for words.

"This can't be. That shot and the fall should have killed anyone else," he thought frantically.

His hands went to his helmet, clutching the sides. He shook his head over and over again. None of this was adding up. How was Taran still alive and walking? How was Ahsoka and Barriss here as well? How were they able to fake their own deaths and evade the Empire for two years? The questions buzzed in his head by the score.

"Sir! Get up!" said Kix, coming up from behind him to try and help him up.

"This can't be happening Kix," said Rex, still trying to come to terms with this series of events.

"It is happening sir. We need orders or else we're going to get slaughtered by them," said Kix.

Rex took the time to look at what was transpiring. He saw Barriss plunge her blade through the chest of another one of his men and use the Force to push five more into the wall.

"We need your leadership for this Rex!" said Kix.

Rex took a few precious seconds to clear his head. Though if he could he would find a way to end this fighting peacefully, he knew there was no going back now. Whether he liked it or not, Taran and Ahsoka were his enemies now under the new regime. He was a loyal soldier.

"Alright...men, spread out! Keep up a steady stream of fire and don't let them escape!" yelled Rex.

Any men who heard the command immediately went in various directions to complete an encirclement of the three of them. The three circled up to make sure that they weren't hit in the back. Rex proceeded to shoot at Ahsoka. Ahsoka deflected his and other bolts with ease, causing them to take cover every now and again. The difference between them was that Rex knew who he was shooting at while the three of them had no idea he or any other men of the 501st was there. To them, they were all just stormtroopers.

Meanwhile, Inquisitor Tytos was coming to and his eyes fixed onto the three Jedi. He stood up, his lightsaber sparking to life. He waited on the outskirts of the firefight, calculating the right time for him to make his move. When he saw an opening, he prepared to go in until he felt a darker presence drawing near. When he sensed it his eyes widened in surprise before a grin started to form on his face.

_"You're not getting away now Jedi,"_ he thought maliciously.

The feeling washed over him as it gave him pleasure to think of what would befall the three of them.

_"I can already sense it: the anguish, the fear, the pain. It's...beautiful,"_ he thought as he grabbed his hand that was beginning to twitch.

Ahsoka deflected another blaster bolt back at the stormtroopers.

"Taran, we need something to keep their heads down," said Ahsoka.

Taran nodded. He scanned their surroundings quickly as he continued to defend himself and the two women. The pillars looked like they would give way. A single earth attack to an adjacent one would hit one and then the other, creating a domino effect. This would buy them enough time to make their escape.

Taran deflected another bolt, sending a fireball with his foot at a gathering squad of stormtroopers to keep them down while using the same foot to stamp the ground, sending a fissure straight towards a pillar. The ground underneath the pillar uprooted it, causing it to tumble into another pillar. The domino effect occurred, causing the stormtroopers to retreat in all directions.

"Now's our chance," said Taran.

The three of them bolted, heading straight towards the colliding pillars. Their senses were honed to avoid the falling columns of stone, sometimes jumping aside as they ran through the rubble and destruction. Forty feet behind them, Tytos pursued them. He kept behind to obscure his image in the dust from the fallout, hoping to screen them.

They cleared the tumbling pillars and proceeded to head towards the eastern entrance.

_"Good, we're home free,"_ Barriss thought.

Suddenly, a dark figure jumped in front of them, blocking their path. They halted, Barriss facing him while Taran and Ahsoka turned back to see Tytos exit the debris and dust cloud. The pale man ahead of Barriss raised his lightsaber, both ends emitting red bars of energy. Barriss drew her lightsaber and readied her stance against Dagor as Tytos and Thalo, Yvan and Lothor came up from behind. Red lightsabers came from their hands as they readied themselves.

"Still think you can escape now?" said Tytos. Taran and Ahsoka could only glare at him in defiance.

"That will be all Inquisitor," said a voice behind them.

Darth Vader himself walked towards them from behind the Inquisitor and the other three acolytes, they making room for the Dark Lord of the Sith. Ahsoka noticed Taran visibly tense up, as well as his emotions flared up. One of them stood out overall: anger. She was also angry as well, but she was also frightened. This was the man who was once her former master. Now here he stood towering above them all, more machine than man.

Vader studied them a long while as if deep in thought. Clearly he was not expecting this. Seeing Taran alive when he swore he had made sure he had killed him was disheartening and filled him with a deep sense of uncertainty, but also wonder. Seeing Ahsoka was alive was truly shocking because there had been physical evidence that subsequently confirmed her death. Seeing Barriss alive brought about the same feelings.

"How is this possible?" said Vader. They didn't answer him, only readying themselves more.

"It seems they do not wish to speak to you my Lord," said Yvan. "Shall we help loosen them for you?"

"No. This is a personal matter," said Vader.

"You know them my Lord?" she asked.

Vader ignored her.

"When last I saw you, you were falling from the top of the Temple. How is it that you are still here?" said Vader.

"How about I ask you a question of my own: why does it matter?" said Taran.

"You trespass on Imperial property," said Vader.

"This was our home," said Ahsoka.

"Not any longer," said Vader.

"We know; you saw to that yourself," said Taran, a hint of venom in his tone.

_"I can barely control myself with him this close to me. Why am I feeling this way? I can't jump the gun now. I have Ahsoka and Barriss's lives in my hands. If I attack now I forfeit them. Calm down,"_ Taran thought.

Vader ignored his statement.

"I'm most curious to know exactly what you are doing in the Temple?" said Vader.

"Maybe we wanted to revisit where you single handedly ruined our lives forever," Taran shot back.

"My Lord, shall we dispatch him? I find his words infuriating," said Lothor.

"No one's stopping you file tooth," said Taran.

Lothor growled and made to attack him. Vader stopped him by using the Force to hurl him into a toppled pillar. Lothor fell to the ground, a trickle of blood exiting his mouth as the acolyte looked at Vader in surprise.

"You are not to attack unless commanded to!" said Vader. Lothor nodded, standing up slowly as he looked uneasily at Vader.

"Vader, let us go," said Ahsoka.

"I will not allow it," said Vader. "First tell me why it is you're here."

Once again, they did not answer.

"Very well. You will tell soon enough," said Vader, drawing his lightsaber. "Commander Rex, prepare to apprehend them."

_"Rex?"_ both Taran and Ahsoka thought, their eyes locked on the stormtrooper in blue armor.

Rex signaled for his men to come forward slowly, their weapons raised.

**"Think we can make a break for it?"** Taran communicated telepathically to the two of them.

**"Possibly, but how?"** said Barriss.

**"From below,"** said Taran.

**"Below?"** said Ahsoka.

Taran stomped on the ground, a cracking sound emitting from beneath them. A circle formed in the stone at their feet. Vader couldn't even find a syllable to say before the three of them disappeared to the level below. They used the Force jump off the falling circular piece of stone and used it to cushion their fall.

**"Split up,"** said Taran. They took off in three directions.

"Find and stop them. Guard every exit with your lives and inform any other squads in the lower levels to be on high alert. They are not escaping!" said Vader, walking towards a new location that they did not know of.

The acolytes and Inquisitor Tytos wasted no time in diving through the hole while Rex directed the surviving stormtroopers and Coruscant Guards present to the upper levels whilst simultaneously hailing down an aide to call for reinforcements on the double.

Barriss ran as fast as she could in her direction towards a flight of stairs. From behind she could sense her pursuers closing in. Their dark auras unsettled her. She knew that if they caught up to her it would hamper her efforts to escape. She kept her lightsaber in her hands, mentally preparing for what was to come.

Behind her, Thalo and Yvan pursued her relentlessly. Thalo used the Force to cause a pillar ahead of Barriss to topple over. Barriss saw the collapsing pillar and managed to jump over it as it landed with a crash. Thalo and Yvan sprang over it as well, never stopping once. Barriss raced up the stairs, turning around for a fleeting moment to send a Force push towards them. Thalo and Yvan were stopped for a fleeting moment as they stopped and got to one knee to keep from being pushed off. They rose back up and continued their pursuit of Barriss.

Barriss rounded a corner, finding a Senate Sentinel rushing towards her.

_"Great,"_ she thought.

The Sentinel swung his force pike at her. She effortlessly dodged the slash and her blade slashed down his back to send him to the ground as she kept running.

"This is annoying," said Thalo.

Using the Force he used the Sentinel's body and launched it at Barriss. Barriss didn't realize what he did until it was too late. His upper torso tangled with her legs, sending her crashing to the ground. She bit her lip hard when she landed, causing it to bleed. Not taking a moment to allow her body to complain from the effort, she untangled her legs from the body and turned around in time to see Yvan in mid-air as she was about to bring her lightsaber down. Thankfully, she blocked the blow in time.

Yvan pressed her back as she was confined to the floor due to the angle. Yvan slashed towards her legs. Barriss executed a back-flip roll to escape as she found herself back on her feet. Barriss and Yvans' lightsabers clashed repeatedly as Thalo came up to aid her. Barriss gave ground as Thalo and Yvan soon engaged her with their might.

_"They're deadly. I have to watch out,"_ Barriss thought.

Yvan feigned a strike to Barriss' left that Barriss moved to block, but instead Thalo aimed a slash at her torso. Her reflexes and natural agility kicked into gear. Only the top layer of her clothing was singed from the dodge. Barriss performed a backhanded slash to keep Thalo away as she took off running again, Yvan in hot pursuit.

Elsewhere, Taran was in another hallway fighting both Lothor and Tytos. Their lightsabers crackled and clashed in a display of green and red. Taran was able to defend himself with ease, his years of personally training coming as an invaluable resource for him. His reflexes were honed and his mind calm despite the nagging in his mind telling him to try and make a break for it.

Tytos pressed him relentlessly while Lothor would follow up from behind to deal in a strike every now and again. Taran jumped over a slash from Tytos and used the advantage of being in midair to rain down a flurry of arcing slashes from above on Tytos who was able to deflect them as Taran. Immediately Taran jump enough off the ground to have his body perform a 360' barrel roll to dodge a low blow from Lothor, landing on his feet and moving his lightsaber behind him to block the strike from Tytos aimed at his back without turning around. He twisted their blades whilst the lightsabers were locked together to get to the other side of Tytos away from Lothor, who aimed a slash that narrowly missed his leg.

"You're not bad Jedi. You would make a splendid ally if you would join with us," said Tytos.

"I'll pass," said Taran.

"Then die!" said Lothor, swinging one of his lightsabers.

He dodged another close blow and bent a part of the wall at the two of them. Tytos cut away a portion while Lothor did the same, but was too slow to dodge the pieces and was hit in his chest. The blow caused him to stumble to the ground and leave Taran alone with Tytos for the time being. Tytos found pleasure in taking on Taran one-on-one for the time being. Taran noticed this as his attacks became more vicious.

"Someone seems to have finally come alive," said Taran, giving ground.

"I hate sharing prospective kills," Tytos said maliciously.

He aimed a blow at Taran's head, he ducking under it and sending an air punch into Tytos to stun him and push him back a few feet. Without a further word he turned and began running down the hall.

"And the chase continues," Tytos said as he smiled. He pursued, with Lothor coming up the rear.

_"I hope Barriss and Ahsoka are okay,"_ Taran thought as he ran.

_PFFT! _

_GLZZZ! _

Ahsoka and the acolyte Dagor were battling furiously at the bottom of a stairwell in a pillared hallway. The acolyte was a proficient user of the double-bladed lightsaber, keeping Ahsoka off balance with his display of handling and combat prowess. Ahsoka knew that this man was probably the most dangerous out of all the acolytes.

Her lightsaber technique flowed through her reverse-Shien grip she had adopted midway through their duel to keep this thrusts at bay. His attacks were very physical, remind of her Savage Oppress whilst he was still alive. She had been hit a few times from the occasional punch or kick he threw at her. Though she was slightly bruised, it wasn't something she couldn't handle.

She slashed at his head to cause him some alarm and pull back from her as he tried to lock in their lightsabers as close as possible. She did a flip over him, striking at him from above. He deflected the blow, but left his back open. She kicked him from behind, making him stumble forward. He turned to give a downward strike to her, which she sidestepped and slashed his side. The acolyte growled from the pain and backed off.

"Stop!" said someone behind Ahsoka.

Ahsoka looked to see who it was and saw Rex and a few of his men behind her, their blasters trained on her. Ahsoka readied herself to battle them next.

"Stand down Ahsoka!" said Rex. "Don't make me have to do this."

"You're not giving me much of a choice Rex. You know what will happen if I do that," said Ahsoka.

As she spoke to Rex, she couldn't help but let the memories flood back in her mind.

_"In my book, experience outranks everything,"_ he had told her in their first actual conversation with each other. From then on their relationship had developed from comrades-in-arms to a friendship that transcended beyond their combat roles. They had fought together, talked and conversed countless times, and shared many adventures. She could always count on Rex whenever a situation caught hairy.

Yet as the good memories came, so did the one that branded him her enemy. She could still remember the sound the blaster made as it had fired into Taran. She remembered the scream she let out when she saw his body crumble to the ground. Yet as much as she wanted to avenge him for his betrayal, could she truly blame someone who was born and bred to follow orders?

"You would do well to listen to him," said a darker voice from behind her.

She turned to see Vader coming down the flight of stairs she was trying to go up. At once her face contorted into anger. Her emotions went haywire. She was able to control them when Taran and Barriss were next to her, but by herself now the feeling was amplified.

"You of all people should know I won't," said Ahsoka, her teeth bared and clenched tight as she fought to control herself from acting irrationally.

"One of your best qualities," said Vader, drawing nearer.

"Stay back," Ahsoka said dangerously.

"You cannot defeat me," said Vader.

"Maybe not, but I can try. Killing you is what you deserve," said Ahsoka. "After everything you've done here."

Vader drew his lightsaber and advanced on her. Ahsoka weighed the odds. She had the second most powerful dark side user coming for her and an acolyte waiting in the periphery. Rex and a few stormtroopers were behind her. In all, they were not good. She glanced at her surroundings quickly. Her eyes picked up a crack at the top of a pillar. A bit of force would make it topple over.

She reached her hand up and used the Force to crack it. The ceiling tile fell and the pillar started to topple over. Vader saw it begin to fall towards him and stretched out his hand. The Force around him stopped the pillar from falling on him. However, as he focused on Ahsoka he saw her flash past him. He didn't even have time to draw his lightsaber as she sped past him. She did a front flip over Dagor's slash and was racing away in no time, the stormtroopers firing at her to try and slow her down.

Vader let the pillar fall down to the ground with a resounding crash as Dagor and Rex and the stormtroopers pursued after Ahsoka. Ahsoka kept a fair distance ahead of her pursuers. She deflected the occasional blaster shot away from her as she ran. Up another stairway she went, turning a corner to come upon two Sentinels.

Ahsoka met their simultaneous blows, turning them back and slashing one down his front. She ducked under the next thrust from the remaining Sentinel, her lightsaber plunging through his chest. She pulled it out as his body fell forward and she continued to run. The fight caused her pursuers to gain on her, but there was still enough ground for her to keep well ahead of them.

Dagor pressed on his speed, using the Force to aid his strides. His efforts helped him to gain ground on Ahsoka. Ahsoka felt his presence coming upon her. She readied her lightsaber for what was to come as she ran, resolving to fight the acolyte. Just as Dagor was about to catch up to her at a crossroads of hallways, a slab of stone hit him square in his side, flinging him to the wall. Ahsoka stopped as she wondered where that had happened until she saw Taran sprinting up to catch up to her.

"Are you okay?" he said, slightly panicked. She nodded, calming him down.

He looked to see Dagor coming for them. Dagor readied his lightsaber as he charged at Taran. Taran stamped his foot on the ground, sending a fissure towards him. Dagor jumped over it into midair.

"Keep running!" he said, sending a gust of air at Dagor. He instinctively tucked his limbs to disperse the air enough to where the air wouldn't knock him down, but it did push him back a few feet. A crash was down another hallway as a squad of stormtroopers blew apart a section of a hallway Taran had sealed with his earthbending, Tytos and Lothor racing ahead of them.

Together the two of them ran down the hallway as they steadily made their way up the Temple to where they needed to be.

"See you brought along some friends," said Ahsoka.

"Oh you know, I am quite popular nowadays," said Taran.

He jumped up, turning in midair to launch a plume of flame from his hand. Tytos raised his hand, using the Force to cause the flames to veer away from him. However, it was just for him. The acolytes were forced to dodge the flames themselves, Lothor catching a few of the embers on his arm and frantically trying to put them out as he hugged the ground. A stormtrooper wasn't so lucky as he found the flames burning the non-armored parts of his armor. A few of his comrades began to try and douse the flames as he fell to the ground screaming and rolling around as best he could.

Tytos glared at Taran, picking the pursuit back up right where it left off as the other acolytes followed closely behind him.

After five minutes of chasing and the occasional small skirmish they made it to the floor they needed to be on. As they ascended the stairs they heard the sounds of lightsabers clashing.

_"Barriss,"_ Ahsoka thought.

They reached the top to find Barriss holding out against Thalo and Yvan.

"Barriss, duck!" said Taran.

He performed an air sweep that accelerated towards the three of them. Barriss instinctively hugged the ground. The air sweep knocked both Thalo and Yvan back, their bodies hitting the pillars behind them with loud thuds.

"Any word from Jaysh?" said Ahsoka.

"None," said Barriss.

"Come on, we need to get to the point before they get any gunships in the area," said Taran.

The point he was referring to was the large balcony at the Temple's southern side. The balcony was large enough for a transport-sized ship to land on with plenty of room. From her they could make their getaway. They had the holocron and getting it safely out of Imperial hands was their biggest priority.

They immediately raced down the last hallway they needed to get to in order to get out. The entrance to the balcony was coming up in front of them, a gate-like structure that displayed the outside. Suddenly, Rex and a platoon of stormtroopers appeared in front of them. Their blasters fired at them as they ran. Their lightsabers were barely fully on by the time they began deflecting them. They still pressed forward to get to their escape route, knowing that it would possibly cause harm to Rex.

Barriss used the Force to push the stormtroopers off balance. They all hit the ground hard as they were about to speed past. However, Taran felt one of them grab his ankle and he fell to the ground.

"Taran!" yelled Ahsoka and Barriss. They rushed back to help him, the other stormtroopers getting into a hand-to-hand combat altercation with them.

Taran kicked off the stormtrooper who was trying to pin him and tried to get up on his feet when another body slammed into him. He was on his back as Rex was using his blaster to pin him using the stock. Taran moved his foot and kicked Rex off of him, using his lightsaber to cut down a stormtrooper coming up on Barriss' unprotected side. The stormtroopers backed off as the three of them managed to fight them off just as Tytos and the acolytes drew near.

"Surrounded and no way out Jedi. Throw down your arms and things will go a lot more smoothly," said Tytos. "We might even forget about torturing you."

"We won't give you the satisfaction," said Ahsoka.

"Then I guess we'll kill you now," said Tytos, he and the acolytes drawing nearer as the three of them backed up towards the balcony.

_"Anytime Jaysh,"_ Barriss thought. She hoped and prayed that he would be able to do come to them, but now she didn't know. She was starting to lose faith that they would get out of here alive.

That was all put behind her when the drone of a ship's engines was heard coming from below them. A rusty looking transport ship hovered up, a laser turret aimed directly at the entryway. The three Jedi didn't have to be told what to do as they dived out of the way. The turret laser cannons went off, sending stone fragments flying in all directions from the twin blasts. Tytos and the other acolytes managed to dodge as the stormtroopers scrambled from the twin blasts. Three were unlucky and caught the full force of the blasts, their bodies sent sprawling to the ground.

A ramp opened on the ship for them. They instinctively knew they had to run for it else they had no chance of making it. Barriss, who was closest, Force jumped onto the ramp. Taran and Ahsoka ran for the ramp as well. Taran jumped on the ramp and turned back to get ready to catch Ahsoka. Ahsoka willed the Force around and prepared to jump. As her feet were about to leave the ground, Tytos slammed her to the ground. She struggled as he held her pinned to the ground, squeezing heavily on her back rear lekku.

"Ahsoka!" yelled Taran.

He prepared to shoot a fireball straight at Tytos when blaster fire erupted from the balcony as the stormtroopers fanned out. His lightsaber deflected the incoming blaster bolts, Barriss helping him deflect them as well.

"Guys, gunships and TIE fighters are incoming! We have to go now!" said Jaysh.

"We can't leave her!" said Taran.

He couldn't be separated from her again. Not like this. The night or Order 66 was playing back in his mind. How helpless he was, how he was unable to even move to help her fight against Vader. Ahsoka was able to wrestle her head out of Tytos' grip to yell to them.

"Go!" she yelled. "Don't worry about me. Just go!"

_"I can't leave you,"_ Taran thought.

The blaster fire was getting worse an in the distance they could see the Imperial ships moving closer.

"Taran, go!" Ahsoka yelled. Tytos looked up to Taran and smiled cruelly.

Barriss understood immediately. Without any further instruction she dragged Taran fully into the ship as the ramp began to close.

"Get us out of here!" yelled Barriss, Taran struggling to stop her from pulling him back.

The ship turned to its left and its engines revved as it accelerated out towards the city. Ahsoka watched it leave.

_"Please get out of here safely,"_ her mind pleaded, the ship flying off into the horizon as Imperial ships followed.

"Quite a shame. You're not the one I wanted, but you'll do for now," said Tytos, disarming Ahsoka and placing her lightsaber on his belt and placing a pair of cuffs on her hands handed to her from a stormtrooper.

He dragged her up by her lekku. She cried out from the rough handling as excruciating pain traveled throughout her body. He turned to face Rex.

"Inform Lord Vader we have a prisoner, and tell him I'll personally be seeing to her investigation," said Tytos, pulling on her lekku harder and causing her to cry out.

"Yes sir," said Rex. Rex was about to turn when he heard Ahsoka cry out again as Tytos began to drag her back into the Temple forcefully.

"Sir, that's not necessary," said Rex.

"I'm sorry Commander, but I believe that is none of your concern," Tytos said coolly. He turned to look at him. "Is it a problem?"

Rex wished to protest, but he didn't want to risk getting on the Inquisitor's bad side. His gaze went to Ahsoka, her eyes watering from the rough handling. Deep down, Rex wanted to help her, truly. At least he would be able to turn her in without him and his men handling her so harshly.

"No sir," he managed to say.

Tytos turned and continued pulling Ahsoka, the acolytes following behind him. Rex watched her leave, pity filling his heart. He knew what her fate would be. Ahsoka's eyes looked back to him before her head was forced to look forward.

"Sir, don't," said Kix. He was worried about what was going on in Rex's mind and knew what the Inquisitor was capable of.

"Kix, I'm smarter than that," said Rex. "I just don't like how rough he was being."

"We served with her. She deserved to at least be handled fairly," said Kix, agreeing with him.

"How are the men?"

"We had 35 killed and 11 wounded from the 501st. Fox's troops lost only 17," said Kix.

"Gather up the men and get them back to the palace. We're done here," said Rex.

"Aren't we going to pursue Offee and Cyneran?" said Kix.

"That's the Navy's job now," said Rex. It had been a nerve-wracking day full of immense surprises and shocks that only one of a strong will could handle.

* * *

Ahsoka lay in the cell under the Imperial palace. Her lekku had some slight bruising from the rough handling she had endured. Her wrists stung from the cuffs that bound her. She focused on remaining calm despite the thoughts of what fate awaited her in the dark cell. She was surprised she wasn't killed on the spot. Yet, no interrogation or even torture had occurred. The only kind of interaction she had experienced was meeting Vader again at the entrance to the Temple.

_Ahsoka looked at him coolly as he stood before her, looking down at her. What expression he had she would never know, the man more machine than human and hidden behind the black mask he would wear for the rest of his life. _

_"I will ask again: why were you here?" said Vader. _

_She didn't answer, instead looking away from him. _

_"Take her to the Palace," said Vader. Tytos nodded and dragged her towards the gunship. _

She sighed as she looked up to the ceiling of her cell. Her thoughts flew around in her mind. She was glad that they were able to get the holocron out safely. However, sadness escalated in her mind. She was finally reunited with Taran, only to have her torn away from him again. The only difference was he was alive, but she was sure she was going to die. It was like their roles had been reversed. Her thoughts dwelled on how he was possibly taking this turn of events. She remembered the look on his face as the ramp of the ship was closed. It broke her heart again to watch him leave as the ship sped off. She didn't want them all to suffer for her sake. Enough had died already for that.

Suddenly, the door of the cell was opened as a squad of stormtroopers stood outside. Their sergeant came in and pointed his blaster at her. Ahsoka had no time to react before he fired. The blue light of the blaster hit her full on. She fell to the ground, stunned. The men quickly filed in and two of them helped carry her out of the cell.

* * *

She awoke on the floor of a large room, she groaned a little as she tried to shake off the effects of the stun.

"Good, good, you are awake," said an elderly voice that still held sinister power beneath its tone.

Ahsoka looked up towards what looked like a high seat, her vision trying to focus on who was speaking. Emperor Palpatine sat on his throne looking down upon her, Lord Vader on the dais at his side. By them were two men wore armor reminiscent of the Old Republic Senate Guard albeit black with a red visor. They held pikes but with no sharp edge or even blade in their hands. They were the Emperor's elite Shadow Guard.

Ahsoka groaned. She noticed the two Guards near her as well, their visors facing her as if waiting for her movements. From the handles on the pikes she would say that they might be lightsaber pikes. She also noticed the pulse binders on her wrists that chained her to the floor so that she was forced to kneel on her knees before the dark lords of the Sith.

"What am I doing here?" said Ahsoka.

"You will see soon enough my dear. A most peculiar situation we were dealt with today. Three former Jedi who were listed as dead, one personally by Lord Vader, suddenly appear in the Temple. Normally if there are any surviving Jedi they hide. Yet, here you are. What is it you were trying to find in there?" said Palpatine.

"Like I'm going to tell you anything," said Ahsoka.

Her binders pulsed and electricity shocked, causing her to cry out.

"This will go easier for you if you reveal your intentions," said Palpatine. "Else these binders will increase in frequency. We are running out of time and must know."

"I'm...not...telling," Ahsoka said in defiance, her eyes blazing in defiance.

The binders pulsed again and Ahsoka's cry was drawn out as it shocked her for a longer duration. She fell forward, breathing heavily once the shocking was over.

"One more time now," said Palpatine.

Ahsoka sucked in a few breaths before she was able to get back to a kneeling position. She looked at him again, this time her mind set. She grit her teeth as she gave her answer.

"Never," said Ahsoka.

"She will not talk my master. Her will is a lot stronger than you think," said Vader.

"Perhaps. Hopefully Cyneran is a lot more cooperative than she is," said Palpatine.

"Cyneran? Taran?" said Ahsoka. _"What are they talking about?" _

Suddenly, an explosion from levels below them shook the throne room.

_"What was that?"_ she thought.

The sound of metal screeching and falling came from the elevator. Ahsoka turned around to look from the elevator door, where more clanging could be heard. She wondered what in the Force was going on. Her answer came when the elevator door seem to crumble into itself before flying off and hitting the ground ten feet away. From out of the elevator shaft, Taran jumped onto the floor from his perch on the edge of the shaft. His lightsaber came to life in his hands when he landed.

"Taran!" said Ahsoka.

"We are glad you could arrive, Cyneran," said Palpatine, his lips forming a toothy smile.

**Next chapter might take longer than anticipated (~1 month) due to anticipated size and because this month of college is going to be arduous so the process will be slow. Due to this a nice little cliffhanger to keep you on the edge is the result :) Please review and any feedback (critical not negative) is appreciated. Until next update!**


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